Return of the Hero
by KicsterAsh
Summary: After full-filling his dream of becoming an astronaut at NASA, Danny returns to Amity Park after several years of escaping his home town. He wants nothing to do with being a hero anymore, but a new ghost foe causes Danny to rethink his choice.
1. Chapter 1

_AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay, this Story is the first huge fanfiction I ever did of Danny Phantom. You can find it's first online appearance in my deviantart gallery. I will be posting it a few chapters at a time, since I've got several adventures following it as well. Please pass the word around to the DP writers on this site. I'd love to have the opinions and critiques of other readers than my DA readers._

_****__Important note: __I wrote in the story that Danny left Amity Park for **4 years.** What I meant was that he left right after highschool graduation, which was by the time he was 18, and he stopped having any contact with anyone but his sister for 4 years. To clarify, he left when he was 18, stopped talking to anyone (even Sam and Tucker) when he turned 20-21, and returned to Amity Park at the age of 25. Hopefully that helps clear up a few time faults in this story. :D_

* * *

His hometown had never been known as the quiet, beautiful community that most outsiders described it as. In fact, Amity Park may have been the most haunted town in all of America. Ghosts, for nearly three years, had haunted and cast spells over this municipality, and for the most part, they had been done without anyone's knowledge. In the shadows, it had been the most cursed town he had ever come to know, and he had been more than glad to have it behind him once he left for university four years ago.

Now, he was being called back to it.

Stepping out of the bus that had driven him to Amity Park from the airport, Danny could just feel the still unstable grounds of the town. Even though he had saved the world and the Ghost Zone at the age of fifteen, Amity Park was, and still remained, a magnet for spirits. It had not only been because of his goal of becoming an astronaut that Danny had left this town behind him; it was also for lightening his burden as the town's guardian. He was tired of being the one hunted down by both humans and ghosts.

And for the past four years, there had not been a single complaint about any ghost attacks.

Danny stared up at the buildings around him and inhaled deeply while closing his eyes and remembering his teenage years. Back then, he had saved the world, in only the way a fourteen-year-old, gifted with supernatural ghost powers, could. Back then, he had learned in so many strange ways how to master his powers, how to control his emotions, and how to be the responsible hero he was destined to be.

When he opened his eyes, he was once again the twenty-five-year-old he was that same morning, with the same trademark hairstyle that first targeted him as a bully victim, and then made him a household name. The only difference was that, despite his age, his travels between the physical world and the supernatural world had caused his hair to take on a slight color change-there were certain streaks of whites, although no one could notice unless standing next to him.

Danny sighed loudly, smoothed out his NASA uniform and hoisted up his bag. "Welcome home, Fenton," he said to himself as he set off down the sidewalk.

Children ran past him, chasing each other or racing to the candy store while laughing. Cars honked if their drivers recognized someone on the street. People bought newspapers at the same stand where Danny had first gotten a job as a child.

Everything still looked the same. Nothing had changed. Nothing had shifted.

_Including that familiar vibe I kept feeling as a kid,_ Danny thought. _AP still carries that ghostly scent that gives me the creeps._

It took several minutes before reaching the block where his childhood house was situated. Even before walking towards it, Danny knew that nothing had truly changed since he had left.

It was still decorated in ghost-like gadgets.

Danny grinned amusingly. "Never thought that coming home would be spooky," he said. "Just as long as Dad doesn't try to catch me in one of his traps again."

He reached the front door and knocked on it.

"Coming, coming," an all too familiar voice called out from within the house.

Danny smiled as the doorknob turned and pulled the door inwards with it. On the other side was a tall, large man, with greying-black hair.

Danny raised a hand. "Hey, Dad," he greeted.

The man's face brightened and he smiled brightly. "Danny-Boy!" he exclaimed, wrapping his arms around his son.

Danny shouted in surprise as he dropped his bags and nearly lost his breath when his father squished him. "Heh, nice to see you too," the twenty-five-year-old replied with a nervous and uncomfortable laugh.

His father released him and grabbed Danny's luggage. "Here, Son, let me help you with that!" he insisted.

Danny was against it. "Uh, no, Dad, that's fine," he said nervously, grabbing one of his suitcases. "I really should carry these up myself. There's some stuff in it that's incredibly delicate and important." He had not forgotten his father's clumsiness.

"Who's here, Honey?" came a woman's voice from down the hallway.

Jack turned around. "Our son's back from university, Sweetheart!" he called out.

Danny's mother came walking around the corner and into the kitchen. She was a tall and slim woman, with short red hair and blue eyes. She, like her husband, was a fervent ghost hunter.

And for a long time, they had been both threats to Danny's life.

Maddie squealed with delight and ran up to her son, where she embraced him. "Oh, my little Daniel!" she said happily, showering him with kisses. "Welcome home!"

"Mom, _please_ stop doing that!" Danny insisted, trying to pry his way out from his mother's grasp. Once he had, he wiped his cheeks before picking up his luggage. "And thanks."

"How long will you be staying this time?" his mother asked as Danny walked passed them into the house.

"Not sure; I was planning all summer, but if I don't, it's probably because I-!"

"Do you think you could show us some of you _ghost powers,_ Danny?" his father interrupted eagerly.

Danny frowned at him and looked at his mother again. "If I leave early, it's probably because of something like _that,_" he said flatly, pointing at his father.

Maddie shrugged. "Danny, you can't escape who you are," she replied.

"No, but if it means staying away from the creepy traps you and Dad have in the basement, then I'll ignore my other half as much as I can."

"Can't you show us just a smidge?" Jack asked.

Danny frowned at him again. "Can't _any_ of my visits here ever start out _normally?"_ he exclaimed. "Why can't you guys just ask something like, 'How were your studies, Danny?' or, 'How have you been, Danny?' or, 'Do you have any girlfriends, Danny?' What ever happened to having a normal conversation with you guys?"

"You're not normal," his father replied.

Maddie quickly nudged her husband's side, causing the man to yelp and rub himself. "Your father is just joking, Dear," she said. "He means that it's hard to hold a normal conversation with you when you're not… well, an ordinary person."

Danny pointed at her. "Either you guys try to make me feel like any other human on this planet, or else I'll be back in Houston, Texas, before you can say, _Danny Phantom,_" he warned. "I thought four years would clear everyone's minds. I want a normal life. No more ghost busting for me."

"We understand that, Danny," his mother replied. "It is your choice, after all. We just want to make sure you're making the right choice. Having powers like yours is an incredibly large responsibility, you know."

"It's about time you two start noticing that," Danny replied. "For most of my teenage years, you and Dad were off trying to hunt me down because of my powers."

"Well, it would have helped if you had told us ahead of time that the Ghost Boy was actually _you,_" Jack replied.

Danny sighed and passed a hand over his face. "Never mind; can we just drop anything ghost-related, please?" he asked. "I came here to enjoy summer vacation to the fullest. I _want_ to be here with my family. I don't want to have to go back earlier than planned again because my family couldn't stop asking me questions about _ghosts."_

His mother walked up to him and patted his cheek gently. "We promise we'll do our best, Danny," she replied. "Now, why don't you go get your things settled, and we can start our summer vacation?" She smiled. "You can sleep in your old room, if you'd like," she added.

Danny grinned in reply. "You haven't changed it?" he guessed.

"Nope."

"Seriously?" He paused for a moment before narrowing his eyes and smiling slyly at his mother. "You didn't rig it with ghost traps, did you?" he asked.

His mother turned him around and pushed him towards the stairs. "Go get your things settled, Phantom Boy," she said quickly. "And while you're at it, you can say hello to your sister."

Danny hopped up one stair and then looked at his mother again with a bright smile. "Jazz is back too?" he said.

"Of course she is. She comes back every summer."

Danny giggled childishly. "Sweet!" he sneered, darting up the stairs.

"Don't bug her, Danny!"

"Come on, Mom; am I _really_ still that immature?"

* * *

_Yes, I am,_ Danny thought as he sneaked up to his sister's bedroom. Jazz was nearly three years his senior, and had been a member of his Phantom Team when he had been fourteen. She had accidentally discovered his gift, yet did not tell him that she knew until Danny had been ready to speak with her about it.

Although those years had brought them closer together, Danny still found pleasure in scaring his sister.

He knocked on her door and then made himself invisible, waiting for Jazz to come out of her room.

The doorknob turned and the door opened. Out walked a woman with long red hair tied up in a bun. Like their mother, she had a slim figure too.

The woman looked around. "Hello?" she called out. "Anyone there? Dad, are you playing tricks on me again?"

Danny took that opportunity to reappear. To any normal eye, he looked as though he had just appeared out of thin air. "BOO!" he cried out.

Jazz jumped back and cried in surprise before Danny burst into laughter. "Oh, man, that never gets old," he said.

But instead of yelling at him, like she normally did, Jazz squealed with happiness and leaped into her brother's arms. "Danny!" she said happily. "Oh, Danny, you finally decided to stay! I'm so happy you made up your mind!" She had stayed in contact with her little brother by email during their studies.

"Just for the summer," Danny replied before letting her go. "Then I'm back at NASA as an astronaut."

"I still can't believe you actually _became_ one," Jazz said with a giggle. "You are _such_ a nerd."

"Yeah, well, _you_ became a psychiatrist and ghost researcher, Shrink."

Jazz shrugged. "What can I say? I guess ghost runs in the family." She looked at her brother with bright eyes. "And _speaking_ of ghost-!"

Danny frowned in reply and placing his hands on his hips. "Not you too!" he groaned. "I just went over this with Mom and Dad!"

"Come on, Danny, just one time, please!" Jazz begged him.

"Why do you want me to go Ghost?"

"Because you look so awesome in that suit of yours and I haven't seen you do it in four years! Come on, Little Brother; just one switch for your favourite sister!"

Danny raised an eyebrow and then sighed while rolling his eyes amusingly. With a wry grin, he straightened out and crossed his arms. "Fine," he replied.

A halo of white light wrapped around his waist. It split into two and began trailing up and down his body. As it did, his appearance transformed, as did his clothes. A black suit with white gloves and boots took his NASA uniform. On his chest sat the white symbol of Danny Phantom.

His blue eyes turned green and his black hair turned snow white. The last change was that his body had become haloed in a thin ray of white light, like most ghosts usually were.

Jazz bared her teeth in an excited grin.

Danny looked at her and smiled tiredly. "But you're not my favourite sister," he added.

Jazz did not care. She giggled delightedly and clapped her hands. "Oh, _man,_ Danny, you look so cool in that form of yours! If you weren't my brother, I'd kiss you right now!"

Danny rolled his eyes again and then snapped his finger. Immediately, he transformed into his normal self again. He frowned once more. "But that's all," he said. "Don't ask me to transform into Danny Phantom again, Jazz, got it? I left Amity Park to get away from that name. I don't want anything to do with this, okay?"

"What's the problem with your ghost powers?" Jazz asked.

"The problem is that no one can talk to me about anything else! I love my powers, Jazz, but if it means only having people look at me when I'm going ghost, then forget it. I'd rather be known as Danny _Fenton,_ not Danny _Phantom._ I'm an astronaut now, learning about outer space. I do research on the supernatural. I don't _fight_ it. That's behind me."

Jazz crossed her arms. "You know, you're just ignoring your destiny," she said.

_"Destiny?_ Jazz, the only reason I've _got_ ghost powers is because I tried out Mom and Dad's ghost portal when it was _supposed_ to be broken! My powers were an _accident!"_

"Nothing is accidental, Danny. Not even your powers. It happened for a reason."

Danny sighed tiredly and walked off. "Forget it. Talking with you guys is a waste of time. I should be enjoying myself, not arguing with you." He turned the corner and entered his room.

Jazz followed him after a short hesitation. When she peered into her brother's room, she found Danny sitting on his bed, staring at the picture frames on his homework desk by the window. It was the quietest she had ever seen him be in many years.

The young woman walked into the room. "Danny, you know we don't mean to frustrate you," she said gently. "You know how Mom and Dad are. They've _always_ been obsessed with the supernatural."

"And you've gotten worse since you discovered my secret," Danny replied heavily.

Jazz walked up to the bed and sat down beside him. "No, I just want to help you," she announced. "I wanted to help you become who I knew you could be, and, well… I just wanted to make sure that my little brother doesn't get killed in the progress. You may have been the annoying brat when we were kids, but you were still my brother, and as your big sister, I felt responsible to keep you safe."

Danny sighed softly and looked at his sister. "I don't want to go ghost, okay?" he said softly. "I'm tired of being the trophy everyone wants to put on their fire place. I just want to be normal. I was able to do it at NASA; why does it have to change whenever I come here?"

"Because you're special here," Jazz replied. "You're not just Daniel Fenton or Danny Phantom; you're a hero."

Danny stared at the floor silently and pondered these words. Not even his mother had used those words to ease his troubled mind.

But for some strange reason, he had somehow expected Jazz to say them anyway.

He grinned weakly and looked at his sister. "I guess that makes up for the weirdness," he said.

Jazz smiled in reply while her brother reached over and grabbed a photo frame. "Most Humans and Ghosts now accept you as their own, because you saved the world," she added. Waving an arm through the air, she added, "But enough of that. It's been an almost solid four years since we were able to properly hang out together, just you and me… maybe even longer than that. What did you want to do first, Danny?"

Danny stared at the photo in his hands. It was a picture of the two other people who had remained distant yet precious to him since he had begun school.

Jazz looked at the photo as well and grinned again. "Ah," she said. "I've got a feeling you haven't stayed in contact with them, have you?"

"It's sorta hard to do, when one of your best friends is at Computer College all the time and your other one is studying to be an environmentalist," Danny replied. "And being at three different schools across the country doesn't make it any better."

"Not to _mention_ that you told me to tell them you couldn't stay in contact with them anymore."

Danny shot her an irritated glare, making Jazz giggle. "Not _helping,"_ he said through his teeth.

Jazz took the picture and looked at it. "Well, then, I guess this is our first stop," she announced.

Danny stared at her in confusion. "Jazz, Sam and Tucker are probably still at school," he said. "And I highly doubt that they'd both come back to Amity Park at the same time."

His sister smiled cleverly. "I wouldn't be too sure about that, Danny," she replied.

Her brother paused for a moment. "What do you mean?" he asked with growing excitement in his eyes.

"I mean, that they're both here. When you sent me an email stating that you were planning on probably coming for the entire summer, I decided to forward the message on to your best friends." Jazz spread out her arms. "Sam and Tucker are back in Amity Park just to see you again!"

Danny gaped in disbelief and then, for the very first time in a long time, embraced his sister. "You've sure got a way to make things turn around in this town, Sis!" he said happily.

Jazz laughed before they both fell onto the bed. "Just as long as you don't embarrass me in public, you're very welcome!" she replied.


	2. Chapter 2

Not wanting to waste another second in the house, Danny and Jazz grabbed their wallets and dashed out.

It turned out to be a very beautiful day. Danny was surprised to find himself actually enjoying the walk he had with his sister. It had been years since he had last enjoyed being in his hometown.

The buildings had not changed. The stores were all the same, save certain names, of course, and to Danny's surprise, many of the owners were in fact, the same as well. The only things that had physically changed were the people he had grown up with.

"Is that Dash?" Danny said with a laugh, pointing at a man down the street.

Jazz followed his finger. There was a tall man with blond hair, wearing a red t-shirt and jeans. He was talking to an asian man while two children, one girl with black hair and a boy with blond hair ran around in circles, giggling.

"Sure is," Jazz replied with a smile. "When he went to join the NFL, Dash met a news reporter and married her. He comes back every summer between games to visit his parents, and brings his kids along with him."

"You mean those two there are actually _his?_" Danny said in shock. "I don't believe it! I never thought Dash could actually be a _father! _"

"Of course he can. People change, Danny, remember?"

Danny looked at her, but before he could reply, the man with blonde hair looked up at them and pointed at the Fentons.

Danny recoiled in shock. "Oh, great," he muttered.

The two men looked at them and then, along with the children, walked across the street.

"Great; now he's gonna give me a good dose of high school," Danny complained, hiding behind his sister. "Just to remind me that nothing's changed!"

"Danny, get a grip," Jazz sighed. "He won't kill you."

"You don't know that!"

"Yes, I do. I graduated with him, remember? He's changed, trust me."

Danny looked at her worriedly until Dash and the asian man stopped in front of them. Danny gasped quietly and cowered behind his sister.

"Hey, Jazz," Dash said with a grin.

"Hey, Dash," Jazz replied. "How's Courtney?"

"Off in Afghanistan, on another report," Dash replied with a sigh. "Hopefully, she doesn't get herself killed. Left the two brats with me."

Danny squeaked, catching Dash's attention. The man leaned over to get a better look and smiled. "Oh, ho, no way, man!" he laughed, reaching out and grabbing Danny's shirt.

Danny yelped quickly as he was pulled out from behind his sister and smoothed out his shirt.

"It's Quiet Danny Fenton!" Dash exclaimed as the other man laughed. "You never mentioned that your brother was comin' over, Jazz!"

Danny frowned at him. "That's because he didn't _want_ to be mentioned," he said.

"It's nearly been five years, Fenton. What've you been up to, lately…" He paused and leaned towards the Fentons, so that his next words could not be heard by the other man. "… Other than fighting _ghosts, _I mean?" he whispered. Before Danny had left Amity Park, he had asked Tucker to create a device strong enough to wipe out the memory of everyone on Earth, so that no one could remember his identity. He had only allowed his family, his best friends, and two other people from high school to keep their memories.

And now that he was four years older, Danny silently wished that he had not chosen Dash as one of those two.

Danny placed his hands on his hips. "None of your business, Dash. And FYI, I haven't been… _fighting ghosts," _he whispered sarcastically. "I've been living clean for about seven years."

Dash was slightly startled by the tone of voice Danny used. He looked at Jazz in confusion.

Jazz sighed and rolled her eyes. "He's worried you'll pound him," she muttered.

Dash recoiled in surprise before looking at Danny with an amused grin. "C'mon, Danny; that was ages ago!" he said, waving an arm through the air. "People can change, right?"

"Of _course_ they can," Jazz muttered behind her teeth while nudging her brother's side.

Danny rubbed his arm gingerly before looking at Dash again. "So, you're not gonna kick my butt or anything like that?" he asked.

"Other than the fact that you saved this town and made it to the front page news, I don't hold a grudge against you anymore," Dash replied.

"I didn't know you _had_ a grudge against me."

"Not the point. I mean that, considering you've saved _my_ butt more than I've clobbered yours, I figured it was just a waste of time anyway." Dash leaned towards him again and added in a whisper, "Besides, other than the fact that you can turn into a ghost and fly around, shooting lasers and stuff, you're a pretty decent guy."

Danny was impressed. He had never expected Dash to actually apologize, but hearing him say these words made all the difference.

"Uh, well, thank you," the young astronaut said while rubbing his neck. He grinned timidly. "Thank you, Dash."

Dash shrugged in reply. "So, back to my first question," he said. "How've you been, Fenton?"

"Oh, just doing some studying, I guess," Danny replied with a shrug. "I've actually become an astronaut."

"Astronaut, eh? Impressive. I didn't think you had it in you."

"Had what?"

"The brains for that stuff."

Danny frowned in annoyance while Dash and the other man burst into laughter. Even the children giggled.

"That's _hilaaaarious," _Danny said slowly, although his voice announced how irritated he was.

Dash wiped a tear before looking at him again. "I'm just kiddin' you, Fenton," he replied. "What I really mean is that it's pretty surprising. Didn't you spend most of high school near the D- average, like most guys like us?"

Danny shrugged. "By the time I had reached Senior year, I managed to bump up my grades," he said. "That's part of what got me into NASA."

"And none of your _abilities_ had anything to do with it?"

Once more, Danny frowned. "If that's _all_ you people will talk about, I'll just leave now," he said, peeved. He turned on his heels and stormed off. "I'm going to get a milkshake, Jazz. Meet me when you and your pals are finished talking _ghostly matters." _

* * *

Jazz quickly explained to Dash how Danny was trying to forget his powers before she rushed off to meet her brother at the Nasty Burger, a restaurant they used to hang out at as teenagers.

Danny was quietly stirring his milkshake in a booth, sometimes making his hand transparent and allowing it to pass through the glass.

Jazz sighed and walked over to him. "Hard not to just play with it, huh?" she guessed, sitting across from him.

"Clam it," Danny replied gloomily, not looking up at her.

"Danny, come on; you haven't been here since you graduated. That's nearly five years now. People are gonna talk to you like that!"

"Then _stop_ them," Danny snapped tiredly, looking up at her and frowning. "Fine, I'll admit that it was nice seeing Dash _smile_ at me, but it gets annoying when everyone is talking to you about your _ghost powers. _Not to mention that the only reason I let him remember was because I didn't want him to go back to _clobbering_ me as an adult." He looked sadly at his milkshake. "I just want to be normal, for once. I want to spend one day in this town without hearing the word ghost. Is that too much to ask?"

"Danny," Jazz began.

She was quickly cut off when something outside caught her attention. Walking past the building, headed straight for the skate park, were Danny's two closest friends since childhood.

Rich-Goth girl Samantha Manson and Techno-geek Tucker Foley.

Jazz gasped and grabbed Danny's arm. "What you need is some cheering up," she said with a grin, pulling him to his feet. She ran to the exit, dragging Danny with her.

"Whoa! Hey, Jasmine, cut it out!" Danny complained as she dragged him out of the restaurant.

"Not yet!" she replied.

Danny looked up and gasped when he noticed that he was about to run into the pole his sister dashed around. Quickly causing himself to turn transparent, he floated straight through it without any harm done. "Would you slow _down?" _he complained as he returned to normal. "If it wasn't for my ghost powers, you would have knocked me out!"

"Thanks for the heads up, Phantom, but we really need to move it," his sister replied. "Before we miss them completely!"

"Miss _who?" _

_"Them!" _

Jazz pushed him forward, nearly sending her brother stumbling to the ground. When Danny had regained his balance, he looked up at the skate park ahead of him. He gasped softly.

Tucker was busy trying to climb a halfpipe while Sam sat at the bottom, speaking to him while tying her hair. They both looked exactly the way they had looked when Danny had graduated with them-save the fact that they were nearly five years older.

Their style of clothing still matched their personalities. While Sam had ditched the purple leggings, she still wore dark clothes and leather boots. Tucker had a light green buttoned shirt, dark green pants and a pair of brown hiking boots. And he still wore his trademark red beret. The PDA glasses he used to wear as a teenager had not been replaced by more casual bifocals.

Danny was too surprised to see them again to say anything. Four years was far too long for him to have never contacted his best friends.

Jazz walked up to him and placed her hands on his shoulders. "So, are we gonna go see how they're doing, Little Brother?" she asked with a smile.

Danny looked at her for a moment before finally grinning. "I… I'd like that," he said as she showed him the way.

* * *

Sam was just finishing tying her hair up when she noticed the red-haired woman walk towards them. She looked up in Jazz' direction. "Hey, Tuck, we've got company," she said.

Tucker finished climbing to the top of the halfpipe and looked at Jazz. "Hey, what's up, Jazz?" he greeted, although he seemed less than pleased to see her. He frowned softly and crossed his arms.

Jazz smiled back at them. "Hi, guys," she said while waving. "What's up?"

"Obviously nothing," Sam replied, a little peeved as well.

"What's the big deal, Jazz?" Tucker wondered. "You send us an email saying that Danny was going to come visit this summer, and we've been here for nearly two whole weeks, and still nothing."

"You know how much you wasted our time?" Sam added, crossing her arms.

Jazz shrugged. "Oh, I don't think I wasted it that much," she replied.

Tucker frowned a little more. "No?" he said. "Well, then, if you didn't waste our time, where is your brother? I've been here for fourteen days, and still no sign of-!"

Suddenly, out of thin air, Danny decided to go from invisible to visible again. He smiled brightly and waved.

Tucker and Sam stared at him in silence before smiling excitedly and standing up. "DANNY!" they exclaimed, running to him.

Danny spread out his arms and all three hugged each other while laughing and shouting for joy. They even jumped in place before hugging again.

Jazz beamed and looked on, happy to finally see her brother smile more than a timid grin.

It was only a few minutes later did the three friends decide to finally let each other go. Tucker straightened his beret and placed a hand on his best friend's shoulder. "Man, Danny, it's been _way_ too long since we last hung out!" the black man said with a grin. "I haven't heard from you since we graduated!"

"Sorry about no keeping in touch, Tuck," Danny replied, placing a hand on Tucker's shoulder. "I've been so busy with work and trying to keep ghosts off my mind, I didn't really notice time fly by."

"Lame excuse! You owe us an apology, Danny!" Sam said joyfully, hugging him again and kissing his cheek. "We honestly thought you had actually died or something!"

"Come on, Sam, you know me."

"Not anymore," Tucker said with a laugh. "Jazz told us that you made it as an official astronaut, Danny! That's way cool! I knew you wanted to be one, but I didn't actually think you'd stick to it since we were kids!"

"Sure I would! I've stuck to everything else, haven't I?" Danny replied.

Tucker chuckled as the two of them shared their secret handshake. "You da master, Bro!"

Sam clasped her hands together and excitedly shifted from one foot to the next. "Come on, come on, Danny," she said eagerly. "I know I'm gonna sound incredibly lame and girly saying it this way, but you've just _got_ to go _ghost_ for us again!"

Danny gaped in disbelief and frowned. He crossed his arms. "Has everyone in this town actually lost their heads or something?" he exclaimed angrily. "Even my best friends want to hear more about my powers!"

"Forget _hear_ about them; let's _see_ them!" Tucker added.

"What's _with_ this town?"

"Come on, Danny; it's been four years since we last saw you in that mode," Sam admitted. "Couldn't you just do it for us one more time?"

"We know you left Amity Park mainly to put your ghost busting past behind you," Tucker added. "But don't you think it would be safe if you just transformed… for your two best friends in the whole wide world who haven't seen or heard from you in years?"

Danny stared at them in silence for a moment before rolling his eyes amusingly and grinning. The halo of light appeared around his waist and split into two. As they slid over his body, his appearance transformed until he had become once more the hero he had been in his childhood.

Sam and Tucker were bowled over. The last time they had seen their friend in this shape, they were teenagers. This was the first time they had seen Danny take his phantom form as an adult.

"Oh-ho! Sweet!" Tucker laughed as they ran to him. "Check out those biceps, man! They may not be built, but they sure feel sturdy!"

Sam trailed a hand over Danny's chest and stomach. "Wow, really firm muscles there, Phantom," she said. "Lean but strong." Looking at him again, she grinned. "You've really worked out, Danny. I'm impressed."

Danny grinned slyly. "Just impressed?" he asked.

Sam covered a blush and tried to frown in reply. "_Just? _What else do you want me to say?" she wondered.

Tucker giggled and pointed at her. "Go on, Sam," he teased. "Tell him how you feel!"

Sam glared at him. "Shut up, Computer Geek," she replied. She looked at Danny again and grinned timidly. "Um, you look… very handsome, Danny, despite the fact that you're wearing a one piece suit."

Danny smiled in reply and struggled to control a blush himself.

"Ooh, I feel the heat comin' on!" Tucker said with a grin. He leaned towards Danny. "She hasn't stopped thinking about you since grad, Bro."

"Tucker, I told you to shut up!" Sam snapped again, yet it only made Tucker giggle some more.

Danny rolled his eyes while laughing softly and shifted positions. "Thank you for the compliments, guys," he said. "Honestly, it's probably the only thing I'll enjoy hearing about my powers all summer." His smile disappeared and was replaced by a stern frown. "But that's all," he added. He returned to normal before crossing his arms again. "I came here to relax before going back to my job; the last thing I need is everyone asking me questions about my powers."

"Danny, you _do_ realize that no one's officially seen Danny Phantom in four years, right?" Tucker pointed out while raising an eyebrow.

Jazz sighed and rolled her eyes. "Yeah, he knows that," she replied. "But he's as ignorant about the truth as my dad is."

"I'm not _ignorant, _" Danny argued. "I just don't want to make _Danny Phantom_ my identity!"

Sam raised an eyebrow and placed her hands on her hips as she, Jazz and Tucker stared at Danny with sarcastic looks. "Um, dude, Danny Phantom _is_ your identity," she pointed out.

Danny frowned back at her. "Not the point," he replied. "What I mean is that I don't want to make ghost hunting my actual job. I need to make a living, and my first priority is to become a great astronaut." His frown disappeared and was replaced by a concerned look. "I just want to be normal for once. And show my parents that I'm not the same failure I was in high school."

"Failure?" Tucker echoed. He placed an arm around Danny's shoulders. "Pal, you are _no_ failure. What fourteen-year-old would have been able to juggle being a superhero while passing classes?"

_"Passing?" _Danny said while raising an eyebrow. "Tucker, I was a D average student."

"But you still passed."

"Not by much, that's for sure."

Sam rolled her eyes. "Danny, what Tucker's trying to say is that you were able to do the impossible at a really young age," she said with a grin. "I mean, we didn't even know how to drive a car yet, and you were able to _fly. _You faced unthinkable dangers, but still made it through to Senior year and graduated with flying colors."

"And for the record, Danny," Tucker added with a wink, "You were never a normal kid."

Danny blinked a few times before grinning timidly. "One thing's for sure; you guys never forgot how to get through," he admitted.

Sam punched him softly in the shoulder. "Just because you never stayed in contact with us, doesn't mean we would forget about you," she replied.

Tucker raised a hand in the air. "So, why not get this summer started while we still have some time?" he announced.

Jazz watched as Danny and Tucker high-fived before turning and walking off. "Well, I guess I'll leave you guys to do your stuff," she said.

"Aren't you coming with us?" Danny wondered.

Jazz smiled back before shrugging. "Never planned to," she replied. She waved to him before leaving. "They're your friends, Danny; it's _you_ who needs to do some hanging out. I'll see you tonight at home."

Danny grinned. "Thanks, Jazz," he said before placing his arms around his best friends and walking off.

* * *

_AUTHOR'S NOTE: Yes, I decided that Tucker dropped being mayor of Amity Park before graduation (he returns to that post in the next story) and yes, I decided that Danny had had enough of having his identity known around the world. So with the help of maybe Clockwork, Tucker made a device that was able to erase everyone's memory of Danny's identity. Only Sam, Tucker, Jazz, Jack and Maddie know now, as well as Dash and another person. Who's the other person? You'll eventually find out. ;)_


	3. Chapter 3

For the next few weeks, Danny was out doing everything with Sam and Tucker. Their childhood came alive once again as they relived every moment, from going to movies to skateboarding to fishing in the lake at the park. It was the happiest Danny had ever been in his life since he had graduated.

Supper rotated for each of them: one night, it was at Danny's; the next night, it was at the Mansons; the next night, it was spent at the Foley's; and then Danny, Sam and Tucker would go out for dinner at their favourite restaurant.

And the best thing for Danny was that they hardly ever spoke to him about his powers. They did not ask him to transform again, nor did they ask him if he had done anything for the past four years with them. The only time they spoke about it was when they were together, alone, talking about all the adventures Danny led them on with a ghost thermos and a bunch of spirits.

July had nearly gone through before Tucker announced that he had a few phone calls to make. Apparently, he had to call some of his colleagues and then a teacher to make sure everything was still set for him in September.

But Danny knew him far too well; Tucker was trying to give Danny and Sam some time alone together, even if they did not _want_ to be alone together.

"Nothing's changed, that's for sure," Danny announced that evening as he and Sam walked through the park. "Everything's still here; the school hasn't been remodelled; the ice cream parlour is at its best, Nasty Burger's still around, and everyone else is as crazy as they were when I first left."

Sam laughed softly. "I guess things stayed _mostly_ the same," she replied.

Danny looked at her in confusion. "Mostly?" he echoed softly.

"… Tucker and I still hang out, despite all the arguments," Sam continued, as thought she had not heard him. "My parents still lend me a bunch of money, even though my account is full to the brim… Jazz is still single, although she's had a bunch of guys ask her out already… I think she has her eyes set on this one guy at her work in the city, but she doesn't like to share her emotions-!"

"Whoa, whoa, slow down," Danny interrupted, holding up a hand. "What did you mean by _mostly_ stayed the same?"

Sam looked at him in silence before answering. "Well, for one thing," she began, "… You weren't ever here."

Danny fell silent, knowing Sam had more to say.

"Every summer, Tuck and I would come home, more in the hopes of meeting you again," she explained. "We had everything planned out: one week, we'd be camping; the next week, we'd be fishing. We had everything thought out like a dream, Danny." Her eyes darkened and she looked away. "But then… you never showed up. You stopped emailing us completely, you never asked Jazz how we were doing, and even when you _did_ decide to come, you either cancelled your plans or left within a day or two. We hardly even had the time to give you a call."

Danny was immediately overwhelmed with shame. He looked sadly at his feet as they continued to walk.

"Tucker almost didn't _want_ to come home this summer, until Jazz promised us that you would be there," Sam continued. "It took some serious convincing on his part. He hated coming home to see his best friend when his best friend never even showed up."

"I wanted to see you guys, Sam," Danny replied, looking at her. "Really, I did. But I was scared that if I came back, everything from my past would come back to haunt me. Vlad, Skulker, Ember, all those crazy ghosts who caused problems… I was scared they would come back to hurt everyone…"

"But did you ever stop to think that we didn't care about that?" Sam asked. "Tucker and I, even Jazz, have been through too much with you, Danny. Even this town is getting used to ghost attacks. It never bothered us because Danny Phantom was always there." She leaned forward so that Danny could see her small yet warm smile. "You gave us hope. And hope isn't an easy thing to lose, Danny. Whether you're a ghost or not, you'll always be a hero. And our best friend."

Danny grinned timidly before tucking his hands into his pockets. "And you guys will always be mine," he said softly.

Sam straightened out and then pushed some of her hair out of her face. "So," she said with a sigh. "Do you have any girlfriends?"

Danny laughed loudly before raising an eyebrow and giving her a sarcastic smile. "Are you _kidding?" _he said. "What girl will fall in love with an astronaut, Sam?"

The woman laughed softly before clearing her throat. "I dunno; maybe an astronaut _woman?" _she guessed.

"Lame marriage. No colours, no differences. Where's the fun in that?"

Sam smiled secretly.

Danny looked at his feet shyly before looking at Sam once more. "Um, how about you?" he asked quietly. "Do you have any boyfriends?"

Sam closed her eyes while reaching back and tightening her ponytail. "Mm, I've had two," she replied.

Danny was shocked. He looked at her, almost feeling his heart breaking. "Uh, two?" he asked nervously.

"Yep, one musician, one goth," she replied. "The Goth guy was okay, but he was _so_ unemotional. Like _really_ badly. Not my kind of guy, if you ask me. Maybe unique, but not mine." She smiled. "But the musician was _so_ dreamy. He can play anything you ask him to, and the best part; he's vegetarian! And he was studying the same stuff as I am!" She looked at Danny with bright eyes. "For two environmentalists, you gotta admit that's pretty colourful, right?" she asked.

Yep. Danny could definitely feel his heart crack and fall to the pit of his stomach. He had had a crush on Sam through highschool, and they had even admitted their feelings about each other. But when graduation arrived, they both decided that it was best that they went their own way, afraid that romance would break their friendship, even Tucker's. Neither of them really cared, anyhow.

But Danny suddenly realized that he _did_ care. And so, while he was off at NASA school, studying to be an astronaut all the while ignoring his best friends, Sam was dating a guy who shared the same interests as her, not to mention knew how to play the guitar properly.

Although he could feel his heart breaking, Danny forced himself to smile. "Th-that's great, Sam," he said. "I'm really happy for you. For a girl who didn't like dating in high school, you're doing pretty good for yourself…" He quickly looked back down at his feet to hide his emotions.

But he did not need to hide them. Sam grinned amusingly and rolled her eyes. "Danny, I broke up with him five _months_ ago," she announced, almost unemotionally.

At these words, Danny raised his eyebrows and looked at Sam in bewilderment. "Excuse me?" he said.

"Come on, Danny, did you really think I'd come back here to see you if I had a boyfriend?" she replied, placing a hand on her chest. "I'd probably be off to _his_ place! Why would I want him to see how _rich_ I am? That's the stupidest thing a girl could do, for Pete's sake!"

Danny blinked several times quickly before blushing uncontrollably with embarrassment. He looked away. "Uh, sorry, must have missed that lesson," he muttered foolishly.

Sam giggled and placed a hand in his. Danny looked down at their hands before staring at her again.

Sam smiled back. "I never forgot you," she replied. "I never forgot how unique you were or how you knew how to treat a girl… Despite being shy and incredibly clumsy, you're a gentleman, Danny. The other guys, they were okay; but they didn't have what you had."

"Ghost powers?" Danny asked with a wry grin.

Sam rolled her eyes again and playfully punched him in the shoulder. "A good head on their shoulders, you moron," she said with a sly smile. "You may have been horrible at calculating stuff mentally in school, but when it came to being nice to people, you always thought with your heart first. It's a rare thing for a girl to find nowadays."

"Does that mean we're an item now?" Danny asked with a soft chuckle.

Sam shrugged. "We said we'd take it slow, remember?" he asked.

"Yeah, but that was four _years_ ago. Isn't that slow enough?"

Sam was slightly startled by these words, but she did not seem to mind them. In fact, she blushed. Looking away, she hid her cheeks before clearing her throat and looking at Danny again. "That's snail pace, if you ask me," she said behind a giggle.

Danny laughed as well before looking up at the sky as the stars came out. "We still have a few hours before my folks want me back in time for _family time," _he said, looking at Sam again. "Did you wanna meet up with Tucker at his place?"

Sam looked around her for a moment before grinning and wrapping her arms around Danny's arm and resting her head against his shoulder. She closed her eyes. "I think we can let him have victory for one night," she whispered. "He's been trying to hook us up together forever. He deserves some credit, don't you think?"

Danny was slightly taken aback by Sam's move to glue herself against him, but he smiled after a moment and rested his head on hers. "Sounds like a plan to me," he replied.

* * *

Tucker _did_ take their night out as a personal victory, but he refrained them from doing it too often, stating he did not want to be the _odd one out. _Of course, Danny never let that happen, though Sam tried too hard to do it on purpose, just to get on Tucker's nerves.

A week after Danny and Sam's night out, August was upon them. They did some more swimming and skateboarding, until two weeks into their last month together, Jazz organized a day where all four of them went to the carnival that came to town. The girls went out together, which left Danny and Tucker to do whatever they pleased.

"This is sweet, dude," Tucker announced as he picked up a ball and tossed it to the pile of plush toys across from him. "Just you and me, no girls, no parents. It's been a while since we were able to do that, huh, Danny?"

Danny tossed a ball of his own before picking up another. "Heck yeah," he replied. "I don't even remember the last time I _had_ this much fun."

"You mean you don't get to ride rides at NASA?"

_"Rides? _What the heck are you talking about, Tucker?"

"You know, all those machine rides that they train their astronauts on."

Danny laughed before tossing another ball. "Tucker, those are for the guys who actually _go_ into space," he replied. "Yes, we had to try them out; I went two years ago for the first time. But trust me, they are _not_ your average rollercoaster. If you eat before going on that thing, you throw up more than your meal."

"Oh, _gross. _You're headed for a bumpy road in life, Bro."

Danny grinned at him before throwing his last ball.

The white sphere traveled through the air until it hit the targeted toy. The pink rabbit squeaked and toppled over into the bucket beneath it.

"We have a winner!" the game man announced.

Danny raised his hands into the air. "Whoo-hoo! Score for the gho-!" He caught himself short of giving himself away and quickly corrected himself. "Uh, astronaut," he finished.

The man behind the counter handed him a giant white puppy. Danny announced that he would give it to Sam once they met up and then left with Tucker.

"You sure you're over that ghost phase, Danny?" Tucker asked as he bought some popcorn for them both.

"Why are you asking me that?" Danny wondered.

"Because you nearly gave your identity away back there," Tucker pointed out.

Danny cleared his throat nervously and looked away. "Big deal," he replied. "A lot of people already know who I am, remember?"

"Yeah, but only the people who _personally_ know you," his best friend reminded him.

Danny sighed and looked at Tucker. "Well, maybe I still _do_ admire my powers," he admitted with a grin.

Tucker smiled back and patted his best friend's back. "Good man! And I was getting worried!" He grabbed some popcorn and stuffed it into his mouth. Once it had been chewed and swallowed, Tucker spoke again. "So; about two more weeks," he said.

"I'd rather not think about it, Tuck," Danny said heavily, looking at his feet.

"Why? Is it because of you an' Sam?"

Danny looked at him and raised an eyebrow. "You're really getting a kick out of this, aren't you?" Danny said with a chuckle.

Tucker smiled back. "It's about time you two start officially _dating, _man," he replied.

Danny laughed softly before answering. "No, it's not just about Sam, Tucker," he said softly. "It's about my folks, my sister…" His smile washed away as he looked at his best friend. "And about you too, Tuck," he added.

Tucker looked at him in silence before staring sadly at his feet as well. "I guess you raise a good point," he said unhappily. "I mean, maybe the next time we see each other will be next summer, unless they send you to the moon or space station."

"No kidding," Danny sighed. He looked at Tucker and smiled sadly. "But I promise to stay in touch this time," he said. "Maybe when we both get a break, we can go to California or something."

"How about Canada?" Tucker suggested with a grin. "I hear Skiing's great up in the White North."

"Skiing, come on, Tucker! Snowboardin's where it's at!"

"You can snowboard if you want, Bro; I like it when I have two legs on _two_ different boards."

Danny laughed before grabbing some more popcorn. "Keep it up like this, Tucker, and I may take everything about missing you back," he warned sarcastically.

"Oh, touché!" Tucker replied just as sarcastically. "I'm _sure_ you'll do that!"

"Just watch me! I was able to ignore you for four years, Pal."

"So, the ghost-boy wants to forget his powers, but he can _still_ manage to be as _mute_ as a ghost," Tucker teased. "When will these days ever end? The next thing you'll tell me is that you'll miss all the bad guy ghosts you've beaten in the past-!"

Danny was just about to place the popcorn in his mouth as Tucker spoke when suddenly, a strange yet all too familiar chill fell over him. He gasped softly and exhaled slowly, watching his breath as he did.

To his dismay, it became visible and very cold.

Tucker noticed it as well. His smile washed away and he gasped.

Danny watched his breath fade away and then looked at Tucker worriedly. "Speaking of which," he said lowly.

All of a sudden, the ground beneath their feet began to shake. Tucker shouted in surprise as he lost his balance and fell to the ground, spilling his popcorn in the progress. Everyone else around them began screaming in fright and running in all the directions.

Danny dropped the giant puppy and helped Tucker back up to his feet. "What did you say about missing the bad guys, Tucker?" he shouted out over the noise.

"I was being sarcastic, man!" Tucker replied as he got back up to his feet. "I wasn't actually _serious!" _

The ground continued to shake until suddenly, out from around the town shot sprouts of purple mist and ghost spirits. Cackling and shrieks filled the air as the clouds darkened.

"Oh, come _on!" _Danny complained. "I come back for only _three_ months, and _this_ is what I GET?" He looked at Tucker. "Cover me; I'm goin' GHOST!"

Without a moment to show his excitement in seeing his best friend transform, Tucker grabbed the giant plush toy and leaped in front of his best friend, shielding him from view from other eyes.

There was a bright flash of light and two blue haloes sprouted, one shooting to the ground and the other up to the sky. Once they had disappeared, Tucker leaped back.

Danny had now completely transformed once more, this time to do some protecting. His white hair fluttered in the air as the wind blew and his eyes glowed green.

Tucker stared at him in awe, amazed to see so much courage and fearlessness in his best friend's eyes.

Danny crouched low and held up an arm. "Find the girls, Tucker!" he ordered. "And maybe send a distress call to my parents!" With that, he shot up into the air at an amazing speed, leaving behind him a gust of wind.

Tucker held his hat in place to keep it from flying away and then looked up as Danny flew off towards the nearest spout of spirits.

_Although I was hoping to see Danny in action before we went back to school, I wasn't expecting things to go completely_ wrong, Tucker thought as he turned and dashed off to find Sam and Jazz.


	4. Chapter 4

Danny flew up into the darkening sky, heading straight for the nearest spout of ghosts. The wind whistled by him, and for a split second or two, he recalled the joy of being able to fly freely.

Coming near enough, Danny stopped and stared at the spout before him. "What the heck is going on?" he wondered, watching all the ghosts fly past him and into the clouds. "I've never seen ghosts come out of the Ghost Zone like this before." A chill came over him as he hugged himself. "I'd better figure it out soon; if I don't, all that cold energy inside will freeze me to death. Maybe laying off on the ghost powers for four years wasn't such a good thing after all."

A bright bolt of lightening rapidly shot down from the sky, only inches from Danny. The man shouted in fright and floated back a few steps before looking up to the clouds. "Something's happening up there," he said to himself. "That's where all the ghosts are going." His legs came together to form his ghost tail. "I'd better check it out."

He flew up into the clouds, following the spouts of spirits, and only stopped once he was above the thick layers of haze.

Danny gasped. "You have _got_ to be _kidding_ me," he said in horror, staring at the sight before him.

All the ghosts were moulding into one large being. It seemed to be the shape of a man, but Danny was unable to properly tell yet, due to the swarms of ghosts.

"I come all the way from NASA, Texas, _just_ to visit my family, and _this_ is what I get?" Danny complained, as his hands began to glow green. "I'm beginning to wonder if everyone didn't just open the ghost portal to annoy me."

_"Quite on the contrary, Danny Phantom," _a deep voice boomed through the air. _"I've been patiently awaiting your arrival for a very long time." _

Danny looked about to find the source of the voice until he realized that it was coming from the giant mass of spirits before him. Mouth gaping, he raised his head and looked up.

Two red eyes opened and a wide yet sinister grin looked down upon him. _"It's an honour to finally meet you, Danny Phantom, _" the ghost announced as his body continued to take shape. _"I've only heard about your awesome powers since you were but a boy. And to think that after all these years, my patience has paid off; I'm finally meeting the famed_ Halfa _most ghosts in the Ghost Zone are talking so highly about." _

His body finally took shape, and all the ghosts ceased to flow upwards. The ghost stood at least twenty-feet tall, and was dressed in a king-like suit with a cape. He smiled deviously down upon Amity Park's hero.

Danny bared his teeth and clenched his fists. "Who are you?" he demanded to know. "I've never heard about a ghost like you before!"

_"Why, I'm simply heartbroken, my boy," _the ghost replied. His body illuminated and he began to shrink down to an average man's height. "Allow me to introduce myself; I am Lord Deavon, otherwise known as… the Ghost Keeper."

"The _Ghost Keeper! _" Danny gasped as he covered his mouth. _I remember Skulker telling me about the Ghost Keeper_, he thought. _He said that he was a Ghost that imprisoned other spirits and sucked out their afterlife to make it his. Apparently, he holds some kind of grudge against humans. _

The Ghost Keeper smiled. "You are right," he said, catching Danny's attention. His eyes narrowed. "I _do_ hate humans."

Danny stared at him in shock. "You can hear my _thoughts? _" he exclaimed.

"I can hear the thoughts of _all_ ghosts, Danny," Ghost Keeper replied. "That is how I gain my powers. I take the ghosts with the most fearless thoughts and drain their powers to make them mine." He chuckled softly. "And when you're in this form, I can _smell_ your energy, even when you are in the Human world and I in the Ghost world."

"What do you want with Amity Park, Ghost Keeper?" Danny growled. "You may have a grudge against humans, but I hardly doubt anyone in this town has done anything to you."

"Silly Human," the ghost said. "I am not here to seek revenge over this town; I am here to fight _you." _

Danny got into ready stance. "Well, you're not going to get a fight, Pal," he said. "I've got greater powers than any other ghost in the Ghost Zone. Messing with me is the last thing you want to do."

"You don't seem to understand, Daniel," the Ghost Keeper replied, as his smile washed away. "A Human like you does not _deserve_ such supernatural gifts."

"Oh, yeah? And how's that?"

"Merely for the fact that you are _running_ from your _destiny." _

Danny's frown faded away and he stared at the ghost in silence.

"You left Amity Park four years ago in the hopes of putting your ghost fighting life behind you," the ghost continued, pointing at Danny. "You went to become an astronaut, your childhood dream, and you hoped to never need to face your powers again." His frown grew. "Foolish child; you don't seem to understand the power you possess. A human as idiotic as you should not _have_ them."

Danny blinked a few times before frowning again. "I may have done so, but I never regretted having them," he replied. "As long as I can use them to keep my family and friends safe, then that's all that counts." His hands began to glow blue. "Now, if you don't go back to where you're supposed to go, then I'll just have to use some _Ghostly Ice_ on you."

The Ghost Keeper smiled again and crossed his arms. "I will not leave until I have what I came for," he said. _"Danny Phantom." _

"Well, you're not getting him," Danny growled back. "So unless you want me to stuff you into that thermos I'm _sure_ my parents still have, I'd advise you to get the heck out of this world!"

The Ghost Keeper growled back. "Your stupid gadgets won't stop me, Human," he hissed.

"Then, it might as well slow you DOWN!"

With all his might, Danny threw his arm forward and tossed a ray of blue light at the ghost. It hit it straight in the chest, pushing the Ghost Keeper backwards a few yards. The ghost groaned painfully.

"Get the heck away from this town!" Danny yelled.

The Ghost Keeper glared at him, his eyes flashing. "Unless you surrender yourself to me, don't COUNT ON IT!" he shouted. He threw a ghost ray of red light at Danny.

Danny gasped and made his body intangible, allowing the ray to pass through him without harming him. But when he returned to normal, the Ghost Keeper leaped upon him and a physical fight broke out between them as they plummeted out of the clouds.

Danny tossed his feet and fists into the ghost while the Ghost Keeper did the same. "I won't let you take me or anyone else in this town, Ghost Keeper!" Danny growled.

"If you don't, then I'll curse this place to merge into the ghost Zone, Danny!" the ghost yelled back. "And if I do that, everything will die, and all of your _people_ will turn into ghosts!"

"That's impossible! We would only become intangible!"

"Not where _I_ would send you! Without a ghost shield, you will all die! Now surrender yourself!"

Danny punched him in the face and managed to break free. "NEVER!" he hollered before swooping around and flying towards the carnival.

The Ghost Keeper rubbed his cheek and growled like a wolf as his eyes glowed red. "You will pay for your incompetence, Danny Phantom," he hissed. He created a red plasma sphere in his hand and threw it at the man.

Danny felt the sphere strike him in the back, causing him to recoil and scream painfully before plummeting towards the ground.

"You have three days before I come after you myself, Danny Phantom!" the Ghost Keeper shouted angrily as his voice roared over the town. "If you do not surrender yourself, then prepare to lose EVERYTHING!"

* * *

Tucker had gone and found Jazz and Sam and had just enough time to explain what had happened before Danny's parents showed up. Jack and Maddie had seen from their house what had happened and immediately race out to the Carnival.

But by the time they had arrived, all the ghosts had vanished over the clouds, and everything fell silent.

Tucker pointed upwards. "Danny went straight up there and disappeared," he said. "We haven't seen him since he left."

"How the heck did all those ghosts come out anyway?" Sam wondered. "Don't they normally need a ghost portal for that?"

"Not necessarily," Jack replied with a frown. "There are other means of ghosts entering our world."

There was suddenly a bright flash from inside the clouds, and out flew two ghosts. One did not seem the least bit familiar to anyone; but the second did.

"That's Danny!" Jazz exclaimed. "He's fighting some kind of ghost!"

"I don't recognize that one," Tucker noted. "Do you, Sam?"

"No, but who _cares? _" Sam complained. "He looks nearly ten times stronger than Danny is!"

They watched as Danny broke free and started flying towards them. The other ghost shot a plasma sphere at him, causing him to recoil and scream in pain before continuing his way down freefalling.

"You have three days before I come after you myself, Danny Phantom!" they heard the first Ghost shout angrily. "If you do not surrender yourself, then prepare to lose EVERYTHING!"

They watched as the ghost disappeared over the clouds again.

"He's after Danny?" Jazz said worriedly. She looked at her parents. "Do you think we should have told him anything?"

Her parents looked at her until Danny crash landed on the ground ahead of them. The man traveled over it towards them, causing them all to jump out of the way as he ploughed through. He only came to a stop a few feet away.

"Danny!" Sam gasped as she and Tucker ran over to him.

Danny groaned weakly and painfully pulled himself up onto his feet. He held a gloved hand up to his head.

Tucker reached out to him once he and Sam were nearby. "Danny, are you alright?" the black man asked.

Danny pushed Tucker's hand away from him. "Don't!" he warned, straightening himself out and looking up at the sky.

Just as the man had expected, the ground began to tremble again and, although the clouds broke away, the sky turned an eerie shade of purple.

"This is beginning to feel _way_ too familiar," Sam said worriedly.

Danny ran off a few feet. "He's throwing us into the Ghost Zone!" he said.

"The Ghost Zone?" his parents and sister echoed.

Danny looked down at his hands for a moment. "This will be tricky," he muttered to himself.

"Danny, what are you talking about?" Sam asked. "We'll be fine, won't we? We'll just be like ghosts in that realm-!"

"Not where he's planning to take us," Danny replied. He held up his arms and opened his palms. "Please work," he begged to himself. Shutting his eyes tightly and clenching his teeth, Danny took a deep breath and his hands began to glow a bright green.

Everyone stared at him for a moment until they noticed that up above, a strange ectoplasmic shield began to spread over the entire town and area. People that had come out from hiding pointed upwards and began wondering what was happening.

Tucker already knew. He pulled on his hat and stared at the shield in horror. "That's a ghost shield!" he exclaimed. "Danny's throwing a _ghost shield_ over the entire town! That's the largest man-made shield ever!"

"Danny, stop it!" Maddie exclaimed loudly. "That's too much for you!"

Danny ignored them and continued to create the shield. He groaned painfully, beginning to feel his energy get drained with every second that passed. His legs began to shake, but he just had to hold on until the shield had been completed. Then, his father's machinery would be able to sustain it.

"Danny, STOP!" Jazz cried out. "You haven't used this much energy in nearly five years!"

"You're going to _kill_ yourself!" his father added.

Danny yelled painfully as the shield continued to creep over the town. Slowly, it began to join with the ground, and just as it created a perfect dome over Amity Park, the world outside transformed completely until the town was hovering in the Ghost Zone.

Danny's hands stopped glowing and fell to his sides. He looked up dizzily at the shield as everything began to blur.

"There," he whispered to himself as he began to sway. "All… all _done."_

He felt forward to the ground as people shouted out his name in echoes. Then, a black curtain fell over his eyes and all went silent.

* * *

_AUTHOR'S NOTE: For some reason, I got a cross between Dan Phantom and Vlad Plasmius when I designed the Ghost Keeper. Don't ask why, I have absolutely NO idea, haha!_


	5. Chapter 5

"Danny?"

"Danny, are you okay?"

"Please wake up, Sweetie."

"Danny, open your eyes, man!"

Danny groaned and raised a hand to his head, hoping that it would stop all the echoes inside. "Wh-what?" he croaked. "Wh-where am I?"

"You're at home. In bed. In your underwear. And everyone's here."

Danny shot his eyes opened and sat up straight. "I'm _WHAT?"_ he exclaimed in horror.

But when he looked down at himself, he was wearing the same shirt and pants he had on when he went to the carnival, although he was lying on his bed.

Danny stared at himself in confusion until he heard a familiar giggle. When he looked up, he saw that his parents, sister and best friends were all present.

Tucker choked on a laugh. "Oh, man, I am _never_ gonna get tired of doing that to you," he sneered.

Sam nudged his side with her elbow. "Tucker, grow up!" she scolded. When she looked at Danny, her eyes filled with concern. "Are you alright, Danny? You've been out for three hours."

Danny rubbed his head gingerly. "I've been out?" he echoed tiredly.

"When you passed out at the fair, we brought you back here," Jazz explained. "You changed back to normal after putting up the ghost shield."

"The _ghost_ shield?" Danny exclaimed. He quickly got out of bed and ran to his window. Opening it and sticking his head out, he stared up at the sky above.

Sure enough, the green shield was still there, keeping the town from disappearing into the Ghost Zone forever-the same Ghost Zone that was now surrounding them at all sides.

"It's still holding up?" Danny asked hopefully.

His father pointed over his shoulder. "We put up our shields and combined them with yours to keep feeding it power, Son," he said proudly.

"It should last for another few days," his mother added.

Danny turned around. "Good," he said. "Then I guess I better go gho-!"

He began to transform, but to his complete surprise, found that it caused him to grow weak again. He grasped his head in his hands and moaned before sitting on the bed. Unable to complete his transformation, he turned back to normal again.

"Danny, you can't change yet," Tucker announced. "You're too weak."

"I've been able to do it before," Danny muttered sickly.

"Yeah; over five _years_ ago," Sam pointed out with a frown. "You've been ignoring your powers since grad, remember? You haven't had any practice."

Danny groaned and once he had regain his balance, stood up and stared out the window again. "I can't believe this," he said.

"What; that the town's in jeopardy again and you just saved us from becoming ghosts?" Tucker guessed.

"No; I can't believe that every time I come here, something goes _wrong!"_ Danny yelled angrily. He pulled on his black hair and shook his head. "Coming back here was a huge mistake on my part! I just put everyone into danger, and another crazy ghost wants to have my head!" He turned around and walked by everyone to get to the door. "I need to be alone for a while."

_"Alone?" _Sam scoffed, causing Danny to stop in his tracks. The twenty-five-year-old crossed her arms and frowned at her boyfriend. "Danny, being alone at a time like this when a Ghost is after you is the stupidest thing you could do. Without any practice on your powers, how do you expect to be able to defeat that guy?"

"The last time I checked, Sam, I was able to still _use_ my powers," Danny replied, turning his head and frowning at her. "Just because I haven't used them in four years, it doesn't mean I _can't_. I need to go do some thinking about this before my deadline comes up-!"

"Danny, wait," Jazz insisted. "I think Sam has a point. You should rest up a bit and then let us help you."

"Let _you_ help _me?"_ Danny scoffed, turning around completely and frowning at his sister. He pointed at her. "If you hadn't insisted on me coming here for the summer, this never would have happened, Jazz! Everything in this town was fine until I came back! The ghosts had finally left this place in peace because I wasn't here anymore, and now that I'm back, everything's gone down the drain! If I had just stayed at NASA, I-!"

"SHUT UP!"

Danny stopped cold in his words and looked at Sam when she yelled at him.

Sam had her fists clenched and a large frown over her brow. "You don't _get_ it, do you, Danny?" she said dryly. She spread out her arms. "Just because you left Amity Park, you think things got _better?_ Well, FYI, Phantom-Boy…" She narrowed her eyes. _"It got WORSE." _

Danny became completely silent. He raised his eyebrows and stared at Sam, not understanding anything.

Sam crossed her arms. "When you left, the attacks got _worse_, Danny," she said. "Jazz only _told_ you everything had gotten better so that you could go off and follow your dreams. She wanted you to be happy, just like the rest of us." Her eyes saddened. "When the ghosts couldn't find you, they got more violent. But thanks to our experience and your parents' improvement in their ghost weaponry, we were able to stop all of them and keep putting them back through the portal."

Danny stared at her in disbelief before looking at his sister. "Jazz, is that true?" he asked.

Jazz placed her hands together and looked down at them sadly. "Pretty much," she replied.

"But… but why didn't you just _tell_ me, Jazz? Why didn't you just say that you needed me?"

"Because you had left Amity Park to become an astronaut, Danny," his sister said softly. "You told me that you wanted to go live a normal life and follow your dreams. You wanted to put ghost busting behind you." Jazz looked at him sadly. "So I… I lied to keep you happy… and to keep you safe."

"But that just put everyone else into danger!" Danny pointed out, holding his arms out to the window. "Amity Park is on the brink of becoming a ghost town… and I mean _literally!" _

Sam frowned gravely. "As if you would have shown up any of those times during the past four years, Danny Fenton," she argued. "You ignored your best friends, you stopped using your powers, and you specifically _told_ us all that you didn't want to talk about ghosts! So if you're still trying to run from your destiny now, what difference would it have made if we had called you earlier?"

Danny stared at her in silence as shame began to settle into his eyes. He shook his head. "Sam," he said softly.

Sam shut her eyes tightly to keep her tears back. "Forget it; I don't want to here anymore of your lame excuses!" she said heavily. "If we weren't good enough for you, then why did you even bother coming back?"

She ran out of the room, brushing against Danny as she did. Danny simply remained still, not turning to watch her leave.

Tucker ran out after her, though. "Sam, wait!" he called out, dashing out after his best friend.

Danny stared at the floor and then rubbed his arm slowly where Sam had brushed against it. He looked up at his parents and sister, who were still standing there in silence.

He stared at them silently before daring to open his mouth. "… I had no idea," he said quietly.

His parents looked at him sadly before leaving the room. Jazz watched them leave before looking at her brother again. "We know that," she said softly. Turning and following her parents out, she added, "Neither did we."

Danny watched her leave before walking up to his bed and sitting on it. Tears filled his eyes as he sighed shakily and placed his face in his hands, not certain of who he was anymore.


	6. Chapter 6

Evening soon arrived, and the eerie purple outside the ghost shield darkened as night began to fall. Though restless, Amity Park's citizens retreated indoors to await any news.

Danny went outside, though. After resting up in his room, he pulled out the rope he had kept secret since he had been a child and tossed it over the side of his window. Without anyone knowing, he escaped the house and ran to the park where he could do some thinking alone.

The air was dead. Not even the water of the lake stirred. The trees did not dance, nor did the birds sing. Everything was silent.

Like in the Ghost Zone.

Danny sat by the lake staring at his reflection in silence, hoping to hear at least one natural sound. He was sitting on the rocks where he, Tucker and Sam had officially forged their friendship when they all first met in kindergarten. They had sat there together while their parents chatted on the picnic blanket, and made an oath that, no matter what, through thick or thin, nothing would tear their friendship apart. Danny, Tucker and Samantha had become the best of friends, despite their differences and personalities, and no one, not even their parents, could change that.

Danny sighed sadly and wrapped his arms around his legs as he thought about that day so long ago. He had been the most timid five-year-old in Amity Park, and probably never would have played with either Tucker or Sam, had Tucker not been such a blabber mouth. Tucker enjoyed speaking about anything and everything, especially when he got excited. Danny had been playing with blocks alone when the black boy came and sat down with him and asked if he could play with him. Later, Sam came to join them, stating that she was tired of colouring Barbie pictures with the other girls.

Although Danny hardly spilled a syllable to either of them for the first few days, they had become friends from the moment they met.

But now, that all seemed too distant to be real any longer. Back then, Danny was just a regular kid, afraid of the dark and the ghosts that his parents said could haunt his closet. Back then, he hated Halloween because of the stories his parents shared. Back then, he had to rely on Jazz to keep him safe.

Back then, he wasn't half-ghost.

Danny stared sadly at his reflection in the perfectly still water. "Maybe Sam was right," he said to himself. "Maybe I _am_ trying to ignore everything. Maybe I _am_ trying to run away from who I am." He placed his chin on his knees and hugged himself tighter. "Or _whatever_ I am."

His black hair draped over his eyes as Danny leaned down to get a better view of his reflection. He closed his eyes for a moment, waited and then opened them again. Now, instead of staring into the reflection he knew all too well, he was staring at the reflection of a man with glowing green eyes and snow white hair.

He was staring at a ghost.

His heart sank as he transformed himself back to normal and buried his face on his knees. "What am I supposed to do?" he asked. "Who am I supposed to be? Why is this all so confusing?"

"It's not confusing."

Danny raised his head and looked in the direction the voice had come from.

Tucker climbed up onto the rocks towards him, grinning. "It's actually pretty simple, if you ask me," he said. "You are Danny Fenton, astronaut and Amity Park's superhero, Danny Phantom, the world's most powerful ghost." The black man sat down beside him and hung his legs over the rock. "See? Pretty simple, no?"

"What are you doing here?" Danny wondered quietly.

Tucker shrugged his shoulders. "I heard about this guy who needed some cheering up," he replied. "So when I went to check if he was in his room and discovered nothing, I came by to see if I could find him." He looked at the rocks and then at his best friend, smiling. "This place brings back memories, huh?" he said. He raised his head and closed his eyes. "We promised to be best friends forever here, right on this rock." Tucker giggled and looked at Danny again. "And then I pushed you into the pond to make it official," he added.

Danny chuckled weakly and stared at his reflection again. "That was the weirdest baptism I had ever had," he said softly. "Not to mention my mom totally freaked."

Tucker laughed quietly for a moment before looking at his best friend again. When Danny only continued to stare sadly at his reflection, Tucker sighed and leaned over his legs. "Danny, don't take it too hard, okay?" he said. "Sam's just as freaked out about this as you are."

"Sam? Freaked out? Tucker, she totally blew up in my face."

"Could you honestly blame her? I mean, you _were_ acting like a cocky ghost hunter, you know that?"

Danny remained silent.

"Look, Bro, what she said was true; ghost attacks did continue to happen here. But we knew you didn't want to have your dreams interrupted by another problem, so we decided never to tell you. Jazz and your folks took care of things while we were at school, and we'd keep an eye out when we came to visit."

Danny sighed sadly. "All this time, I thought I was escaping my past and keeping everyone I cared about safe," he said softly. "But after today, I realize how completely stupid I actually was. I haven't escaped my past; it's just bodychecked me in the side while letting me know that no one's been any safer with me gone."

"Your past hasn't caught up with you, Danny," Tucker replied. "Nor will you be able to escape it. The past is the past; it doesn't try to break you; it builds you. You have superpowers that make you unique, and it helped you build a foundation for who you were born to be."

"But _who_ am I born to be, Tucker?" Danny asked. "Who and _what?_ Am I an astronaut? Am I a ghost? Am I _both_ or _neither?_ Who _am_ I?"

Tucker smiled and placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "You are Danny Fenton," he replied in a whisper. _"That's_ who you are, and _that's_ who you were born to be. Ghost powers or no ghost powers, you are Danny Fenton; and nothing can change that."

Danny stared at him as he spoke before finally finding the strength to grin. "Just Danny?" he whispered.

"Just Danny."

"... Thanks, Tucker. For always being there."

Tucker winked in reply. "What are best friends for, man?"

A loud groan came from outside the ghost shield, making both men look up to the sky. An eerie breeze began to blow around them.

Danny watched as his breath came out visible and then stood up. "We need to get back indoors," he said as Tucker got to his feet as well. "We've got some serious issues to discuss, and some mega researching to do."

"I'm all for another Danny Phantom adventure," Tucker replied. With a bright smile, he added, "But do you think we could take the short cut?" he asked, pointing upwards.

Danny raised an eyebrow and smiled slyly. "Taking advantage, aren't you?" he said as he transformed.

"No; I just don't want to walk, that's all."

Danny grabbed his arm. "Fine," he chuckled. "But we need to do it unseen. I don't want that ghost finding me out here yet." With that, he turned them both invisible and then flew up into the sky.


	7. Chapter 7

Once arriving at the Fenton household, Danny gathered everyone in the living room, everyone including Sam, and began to tell them of what he had learned about the Ghost Keeper.

"One of the ghosts I used to fight told me that the Ghost Keeper was a spirit with unimaginable powers," Danny explained. "He lived in a part of the realm where no ghost dared to tread, afraid that they would be the next to be sucked out of existence. He can hear the thoughts of ghosts, which is why he was able to hear mine when I was in ghost mode. He picks out his prey by their thoughts and their scent; if he smells courage, strength or fearlessness, he chooses them as worthy candidates."

"Courage, strength and fearlessness have _smells?"_ Tucker muttered in confusion.

Danny shrugged. "I never understood it myself, but ghosts can sense things that others can't," he replied. He slapped his fist down against his palm. "We've got to find out weaknesses in order to defeat him," he went on. "In three days from now, he's going to come after me and suck my energy out. And everyone knows that _Halfa_ energy is incredibly rich and strong."

"It is?" Jack wondered aloud.

Jazz slapped her forehead while Danny rolled his eyes. "Yes, Dad," he replied. "That's why all of those ghosts tried to kill me."

"Really?" Maddie said. "I thought it was because you tried to send them back into the ghost zone."

Danny groaned and passed a hand over his face. "That's not the point, Mom," he said. "The point is that in about 72 hours, I'm going to be a dead man… literally. So we need to do as much research on this Ghost Keeper as we can and find some way to keep him from killing me and destroying Amity Park."

Sam had her legs crossed and her arms behind her head. "Sounds like a plan to me," she said. "What should we do, Danny?"

"Split into research groups," Danny replied. "I need everything we can find out about this guy, and if it means visiting a few _old friends_, then I'm up for it." He pointed at Tucker. "You and Jazz do the internet research, Tuck," he instructed. "Use the _Ghost Wide Web_ to do it."

_"Ghost _Wide Web?" Tucker echoed in confusion. "I didn't even know the Ghost Zone had PCs!"

"It's just like a library to them, Tucker, like a giant book!" Danny explained irritatingly. "I've been shown some of them before!" He dug into his pocket, pulled out a pager and tossed it at his best friend. "Here; I uploaded it onto this a while back. Just plug it into the computer and you'll be wired in no time."

Tucker caught the pager and stared at it as a grin passed over his lips. "Sah-weet!" he said.

"We'll get right on it, Danny," Jazz replied as she and Tucker dashed off.

"What about us, Danny?" Maddie asked eagerly. "What can we do to help?"

Danny pointed at them. "I'm gonna need you and Dad downstairs," he said. "We need to open the ghost portal so that I can go visit someone."

"You can't just take a ship out through the shield you put over the town?" Jack wondered.

"It would be safer if I don't, Dad," Danny replied. "I can't risk opening that thing while the Ghost Keeper is out there somewhere." He pointed to the stairs. "That's why I need to go through the portal."

"What about Sam, Danny?" Maddie asked, pointing at the young woman.

Danny fell silent and looked at his best friend. Sam stared back at him before grinning a little.

"Uh, I'll need a co-pilot," Danny said, trying to cover the blush that was shaping. "We'll take the Fenton Speeder into the portal."

Jack jumped to his feet. "Goodie! Then let's do this thing!" He dashed off, followed closely by his wife.

Danny watched them leave and then looked at Sam as the woman rose to her feet with a sigh. Danny took this opportunity to clear his throat and walk up to her.

Sam looked at him when he stopped next to her.

Danny placed his hands behind his back nervously. "Uh, so you're not… um, mad at me anymore… r-right?" he asked worriedly. "Because I had no idea about… y-you know…"

Sam blinked once and then smiled. "It's impossible for anyone to stay mad at you for too long anyway, Danny," she replied with a shrug. "Besides…" She leaned towards him and grabbed his shirt collar, taking him by surprise. "You're kind of cute when you're an idiot."

Danny swallowed before his cheeks turned dark red and a timid yet wry smile fell over his lips. "I am?" he said meekly.

Sam raised an eyebrow. "But if you ever go cocky like that again without asking good questions," she said. She paused for a moment and pressed her nose against Danny's as she smiled slyly. "I'll just have to punch your face in."

Danny widened his eyes and bared his teeth nervously. "Uh, heheh," he laughed anxiously. "Y-you got it, Sam."

Sam smiled a little more and let him go before turning and walking towards the basement. "So; are we gonna go visit the Ghost Zone or what?"

* * *

Jack and Maddie were readying the speeder when Danny and Sam reached the bottom of the stairs.

Danny stared at the vehicle and stopped in his tracks. "Whoa-hoa-hoa!" he said in awe, staring at the sleek speeder. "Did you and Dad upgrade it, Mom?"

Maddie looked at him over her shoulder and grinned. "Of course we did, Danny," she replied. "We couldn't let your friends catch ghosts with the lamo speeder we had ages ago, could we?"

"We did it while you were gone," Jack replied, twisting a wrench around his finger. "Just in case you decided to hunt ghosts again."

Danny passed a hand through his hair and laughed. "I'll say one thing," he said: "When you guys upgrade, you sure do _upgrade!" _

"They did have a lot of time on their hands while you were gone, Danny," Sam agreed, jumping into the driver's seat of the speeder. She buckled in. "So, which friend of yours are we going to see? The Box Ghost? The dragon princess?"

Danny caught the thermos that his mom tossed at him and fastened it around his waist. "Actually, I was thinking along the lines of _Skulker,_" he replied.

At these words, Jack dropped his wrench to the floor, Maddie accidentally pulled the trigger on her ray gun and shot the floor, and Sam's arm slipped and fell against the horn of the speeder, causing it to beep loudly in the lab.

_"Who?"_ all three of them exclaimed, staring at Danny in horror.

Danny shuddered at the shouts and then smiled back. "I know it sounds stupid, but I need to see him," he replied. "He's got all the best information about ghosts like these."

"Are you _crazy_, Danny?" Sam scolded. "That guy's been trying to hang you on his wall for years! And you're going to see _him_ for help?" She bared her teeth and pulled up her sleeve. "What did I tell you about punching your face in, Danny Fenton?"

Danny frowned back and crossed his arms. "Have any better idea?" he shouted. "If I'm right, Jazz and Tucker won't find much of anything on the GWW because all ghosts are too freaked out to go anywhere near the Ghost Keeper's realm. So I need to go personally talk to the best bounty hunter in that Zone. If anyone's got answers, it's Skulker."

The halo of light appeared around his waist and passed over his entire body until he had fully transformed into the ghost hero he had been since the age of fourteen.

He pushed his hair out of the way and smiled boldly. "And if anyone's got enough guts to face that guy again, it's me," he said, pointing at himself. He looked at his parents. "Mom, Dad; you guys are in charge of communications. Close the portal as soon as we're through or else ghost keeper might break in. Communications should still work."

"Are you sure about this, Danny?" Maddie asked worriedly. "What if you get hurt?"

"I need to find answers somehow, Mom," Danny replied as the doors to the portal opened. He crouched down and stared at the gateway. "Don't worry; I'll be back before bedtime." With that, he flew into the portal at incredible speed, Sam right behind him in the speeder.


	8. Chapter 8

Danny stared around him in silence and could not help but to grin. It had been a long time since he last visited the Ghost Zone, and for one reason or another, at the moment, it felt like coming back home.

"Call me crazy," he announced aloud, staring at the unending zone around him, "But it kind of feels good being back here."

_"Yeah; you're crazy,_" Sam's voice announced in his earpiece. _"This was the only part of the whole Danny Phantom business that I didn't hate to miss. This place gives me the creeps." _

Danny smiled slyly. "I guess full humans just can't understand it, then," he said with a sigh. "You've got too much fear, not enough guts."

_"Stepping over the line there, Ghost-Boy." _

Danny chuckled softly and continued flying through the zone, dodging doors here and there and avoiding other portals. Sometimes, he saw a familiar face pass him by.

"Déjà vu?" he wondered.

_"A lot of your_ buddies _like to camp out next to the Fenton Portal," _Sam replied. _"Probably waiting for you to come back. You probably don't look familiar to them anymore because it's been nearly five years. A lot can change." _

Danny looked at ghosts as they floated by while staring at him curiously, as though they partially knew who he was. Danny stared back at them, partially relieved that none of them recognized him, but a little hurt at the same time that they didn't.

They flew on for another few minutes until they came to a floating jungle, an island in the Ghost Zone that Danny was too familiar with.

_"Is this it?"_ Sam asked.

"Yeah," Danny replied. "Skulker's hunting grounds. Although I know I have to do this, it sure feels a little spooky coming back to this place."

_"And that's coming from the ghost who just said humans are gutless wimps." _

Danny could not help but to smile amusingly as they came down for a landing. "Okay, Sam; you stay in the Speeder while I take a look around," he said, landing softly on the ground. "If I need any assistance, I'll let you know."

_"Danny, I spent the last four years helping your family replace you," _Sam replied as she landed the speeder. _"Do you honestly think I can't handle myself?" _

"I didn't say that," Danny argued. "I just think it would be safer if someone who's familiar with this place went out first. There's a smaller chance that I'll get caught-!"

All of a sudden, a purple orb of light came flying out of the trees and smashed directly into Danny, throwing the man to the ground. Danny shouted in surprise and somersaulted over himself before coming to a stop and realizing that the orb had transformed into purple handcuffs around his ankles and wrists.

Sam unbuckled herself and stood up. _"Danny!"_ she gasped.

Danny struggled to break free but only found that the more energy he used, the less of it he had. _These cuffs are somehow draining my ghost energy_, he thought. _The green ones never did that. _

Heavy footsteps were heard headed his way. Danny gasped softly and looked up, just in time to see a giant ecto-skeleton ghost, covered in the weaponry of a skilled ghost hunter, walk towards him while pointing a weapon at him.

"My, my, what have we here?" the built ghost said with a devious grin. "Another prey to hunt. You didn't put much of a fight up, I'll admit, but you must have incredible courage if you dare to come anywhere near my jungle." His gun hummed softly. "Only one other ghost dared to defy me that way, though I haven't seen him for over half a decade. Pity; he was such a great hunt, especially for a ghost-child…"

He suddenly fell silent and began to study Danny from head to toe. He frowned thoughtfully before putting down his gun. "Wait a minute," he said quietly, tapping his chin. "That suit… that suit looks oddly familiar. And your face…"

Danny bared his teeth as he felt the last of his ghost energy get drained by the energy cuffs around his joints. Once it had, two haloes passed over his body and transformed him back into a human with black hair and blue eyes.

Skulker recoiled and gasped in shock. "What in the name of?" he exclaimed.

Before anything else could happen, Sam dashed out in front of Danny, holding up a giant ghost blaster in her arms. She clenched her teeth and growled at the ghost hunter. "Get away from him, Skulker!" she yelled angrily. "He's not here to be hunted by you, so back off!"

Skulker stared at her in surprise before stared at Danny again. His eyes went wide. "You… you are…" He pointed at Danny. "You're the Ghost-child! You're _Danny Phantom!" _

"About _time_ you recognized me, Skulker," Danny replied with a clever grin.

"But you are no longer a child!"

"Of course I'm not. Humans grow up, Wiseguy."

Skulker blinked several times quickly before finally grinning. He threw his head back and laughed. "HA, HA! And all this time, we believed that you had finally met your match!" he laughed. Pushing Sam aside, he reached down and grabbed Danny's shirt collar.

Danny gasped as he was raised from the ground and held up over it by a foot or two.

"My, my, have you grown," Skulker said with a chuckle. "Your eyes show it; you show signs of age and maturity, at least more than you had back then. I am honestly impressed, Danny Phantom. What in the world has happened to you all those years?"

Danny tried breaking free and frowned back. "I decided to put ghost busting behind me for a while and follow my dreams," he replied. "But now I'm back, and I need your help on something."

Skulker smiled cleverly. "Oh, this is rich," he said. "The Ghost-child, or should I say, Ghost-_man, _has sought out the help of his prey. Whatever gave you that bright idea?"

"The fact that the _Ghost Keeper_ is after my hide," Danny replied.

At these words, Skulker's eyes went wide in disbelief and he dropped Danny to the ground. Danny groaned painfully.

Skulker stared at him in surprise before frowning and pointing his gun at Danny. "You risk your life coming into the Ghost Zone with such a high price on your shoulders, Phantom," he said gravely.

Danny stared at the gun in horror and shut his eyes tightly, awaiting the worst.

But it never came. Instead, the shot that came out from the gun neutralized the cuffs around his wrists and ankles, and gave him back his ghost energy. Danny gasped softly and stared at his now freed hands before staring back up at the hunter.

Skulker tucked his gun away, though his frown remained. "Why do you want information on him?" he asked. "Wasn't what I told you years ago enough for you?"

"Not anymore," Danny replied, getting to his feet with Sam's help. "I need to find out a weakness. He's thrown my entire town into the Ghost Zone, and if my ghost shield fails, every single person there will die and turn into a ghost."

Skulker raised an eyebrow.

"You're the only person who can help me, Skulker. Let's put our pasts behind us for now, and once everything's through, I promise we can go back to hating each other."

Skulker seemed impressed. "No bluffing?" he said.

Danny grinned cleverly and transformed back into a ghost. His green eyes flashed. "It wouldn't be fun otherwise," he replied.

These words seemed to satisfy the hunter. Skulker smiled in return and turned around. "Follow me," he said, walking off.

Danny shared a grin with Sam and they both ran after the ghost who led them into the jungle.

* * *

Skulker held up a ghost torch and led them into a dark cave behind the waterfall. "The Ghost Keeper has been a feared spirit since the creation of the Ghost Zone thousands of years ago," he explained, leading Danny and Sam further into the darkness. "He preys on any ghost that dares to enter his realm. With every ghost he eats, he gains more energy."

"When he gains more energy, does that mean he actually _grows?" _Danny wondered.

Skulker looked at him. "Yes," he replied. "How large was he when you first met him?"

"Oh, about twenty feet tall, if not counting the fact that he was hovering thousands of feet in the air."

The hunter nodded and turned back to the caves. "Then, that would be quite accurate," he said. "It demonstrates his amount of power."

He led them into a giant cavern with paintings on the wall. The paint glowed in green and blue.

"Whoa, I wish _my_ walls were like this," Sam said with a grin, although Danny only rolled his eyes.

Skulker walked up to a wall. "Stories of the Ghost Keeper and many other ghost threats have been painted on these walls over the centuries," he explained. "They're written all over the ghost zone." He turned around, raised an eyebrow and held up his torch to one of the paintings. "As a matter of fact, you'll both recognize one of them."

Danny and Sam stared up at the painting. To their surprise, it happened to be a detailed painting of Danny in ghost form.

Sam whistled lowly while Danny covered his mouth.

"Your reputation is not unknown, Daniel," Skulker announced, putting down his torch. "Although you save the Ghost Zone ages ago, there are still plenty who can't stand you or even fear you."

"Can I take a picture of that?" Sam asked eagerly. "I've just _got_ to show this to Jazz and Tucker-!"

Danny frowned and nudged Sam in the side, causing the woman to yelp painfully and rub her ribs. "Hey!" Sam exclaimed, glaring at her friend.

"As much as I'm _touched_ by how much my popularity has grown over the years, Skulker," Danny said while still glaring at Sam, "We need to get back to the present moment." He looked at Skulker again. "As in, the Ghost Keeper?"

Skulker turned and moved on to another cavern wall. "For nearly two centuries now, no one's dared to enter the Ghost Keeper's realm," he said. "Not even the Fright Knight, and he's as fearless as any ghost comes."

He held up his torch again. The paint above him glowed brighter and showed a detailed map of an area in the ghost zone.

"This is his lair," Skulker explained. "It's one of the largest areas in the ghost zone. But because no one's dared to enter it, the Ghost Keeper now sometimes goes out himself to find preys to feast on."

Danny stared at the map a little longer and then raised his eyebrows. "Wait a minute," he said, pointing at it. "The paint here is purple, not green or blue like anywhere else."

Skulker looked up at it and then looked at Danny again. "Yes," he replied. "That's how every ghost recognizes the boundaries of his realm. His area is purple and grows darker whenever day ends."

"That's what it looks like outside of Amity Park right now," Danny realized, looking at Sam.

"Then that would explain why all of your people would become ghosts afterwards," Skulker replied. "Your town is inside the Ghost Keeper's lair. If anything from the real world comes in contact with his realm, they are immediately separated from their physical forms and turned into ghosts… for the rest of eternity."

"You're kidding, right?" Sam asked nervously. "This is just a bad joke, right? I mean, there are other realms in here that are purple! Like the Fright Knight's lair!"

Skulker frowned. "Those were the clouds, Girl," he said. "Everything is green, but the clouds are purple."

"Why is everything purple and green anyway?"

"It's a ghostly color, I don't know. I just live here."

Danny groaned loudly. "Can we just get back to the Ghost Keeper business please?" he cried out. "MY life's on the line, right now!"

Skulker paused before clearing his throat. "The Ghost Keeper has the same amounts of weaknesses that any other ghost has," he continued. "But what keeps that from being revealed is his power. He's the strongest ghost in this realm, Phantom. No one's been able to destroy him before. His strength is enough to destroy the world, though the reason he doesn't do that is because he wants to rule it."

"Why does he have a grudge on humans?" Sam wondered.

Skulker stared at her and frowned gravely. "He was once a mortal man," he replied. He looked at Danny. "A half-ghost… just like you."

"Like _me?"_ Danny echoed, placing a hand on his chest. "But I thought Plasmius was the only other one who was like that."

Skulker shook his head and continued to walk down another tunnel. "In the Dark Ages, when witches and ghosts became highly feared in the world, a man, one of the most respected men in the kingdom, made a deal with an extremely powerful ghost: he said that, if he was given the ghost's powers, he would use them to protect his people, his king, and most importantly, protect the ghosts that were being wrongfully accused of the crimes of men. But the warrior betrayed the ghost and only used his powers to his own likeness, like stealing from the king's treasury and even attacking ghosts.

"Because of his selfishness and greed, all the ghosts ganged up on him and used their powers against him. They exposed his secret to the world of humans, and for this, he was hung and his body was burned. But his spirit remained, for he still had the powers of the ghosts, and he vowed to return to Earth and have his revenge.

"Unfortunately, he was banished from the world of the humans because of his actions and because he was too weak to properly defend himself without his mortal body. So he came here, built his realm and, by luring innocent ghosts into his clutches, trapped them and stole their afterlife, making the ghosts disappear forever. When ghosts became familiar with his tricks, they ceased to come to him, making him sometimes come out and chase them."

Skulker stopped and turned to look at Danny and Sam. "He has planned his escape for hundreds of years, Phantom," he said. "And he has finally gained enough strength to come back out. The only thing that stands between him and his dominion over both worlds…" He pointed at Danny. "… Is _you."_

"Me?" Danny repeated. "But I didn't _do_ anything to him! I can understand when some other ghost like you or Plasmius are out to kill me, but what did I ever do to the Ghost Keeper?"

"You're the most powerful being at both ends of the portal, Danny Phantom," Skulker replied. "You have become a skilled human, wise beyond your years, and the most powerful ghost Earth and the Ghost Zone have ever seen. You've mastered nature's powers and even other ghostly powers that no one has ever mastered before. And not only that…" Skulker handed the torch to Danny. "You have long life, Danny Phantom. Because of your powers, you've been gifted with longevity of life. You may not live more than one hundred years, considering that's already over the average life span of a human, but you can very much keep your youth for longer than a regular person can."

Danny stared at the green flame of the torch before looking up at Skulker again. "And that's what the Ghost Keeper wants?" he wondered.

"That, and the fact that you hold a power that no one has ever unleashed before," Skulker added. He spread out his arms. "The power of _Ultimate Control." _

As he spoke, the flame in Danny's hands burst and grew extremely large. Both Danny and Sam shouted in fright as the man dropped the torch to the ground.

"I've got _what_ power?" Danny asked as Skulker picked up the torch.

Skulker stood up straight. "All ghosts have this gift," he said. "But not all of them can master it. Even those who have tried can only control certain elements." He held up the torch. "As you have just seen, I can control fire." He pointed at his flaming hair and grinned. "Thus the hairstyle."

"I was _wondering_ who was responsible for that," Sam whispered in Danny's ear.

Skulker did not take any heed of her and continued. "But, as you can see, I can't control anything more than fire," he said. He looked at Danny and pointed at him. "But a halfa has more potential than any ordinary ghost. Its power is combined by the strength of a human _and_ of a ghost. I wouldn't be surprised if you, Danny Phantom, could control the _ghosts_ themselves."

Danny tapped his chin thoughtfully. "So, the Ghost Keeper wants me because of my powers, my extended life, my youth and a power that I'm not even sure I can unleash," he clarified. Looking up at Skulker again, he asked, "And what can he do once he sucks my life out?"

"He'll be the most powerful being of all," Skulker replied. "And he'll be able to disguise himself as a human… namely in _your_ body."

Sam recoiled. "You're kidding, right?" she said. "He'll take over Danny's body and actually go around looking like _him?" _

"Do I honestly have to repeat that, human?" Skulker replied, becoming irritated.

"Oh, gross! So, I'll need to actually be best friends with this guy or what?"

"That is your choice, but considering that if Daniel dies, so does the rest of the town."

Danny remained silent before speaking again. "So, what's his weakness?" he asked.

"That's up to you to find out," Skulker replied. "But all I can say is that the Ghost Keeper is a sore loser. He gets physically weaker the more he is defeated or harmed. And with powers like yours, you can easily defeat him."

Danny thought about that and nodded. "But one power after another would never work on someone as powerful as him," he said. He looked up at Skulker. "What if I used all of my powers at once?"

Skulker stared at him stupidly. "Are you in a hurry to die?" he asked.

Danny was slightly taken aback by this. "And that means what?" he asked nervously.

"No ghost has ever used all of their powers at once, idiot," Skulker scolded. "You'll kill yourself completely."

Danny shuddered. "Okay, then," he said. _"That_ is officially off my to-do list."

Sam stared at the tunnel walls around her before looking at the ghost hunter once more. "So, our main objective is to weaken him physically, right?" she said, when Skulker nodded, Sam added, "Then, we'll just have to use every ghost bustin' weapon we've got. Eventually, that should kill him."

"Perhaps," Skulker agreed. "Unless he can heal himself."

Danny and Sam exchanged concerned looks before looking up at the ghost again. "Heal himself?" Danny echoed.

Skulker shrugged. "Some ghosts can heal themselves faster than others," he replied. "That would make destroying the Ghost Keeper a lot harder, if he sucked the afterlife of a healer." He leaned towards Danny and smiled cleverly. "But the last I heard, Danny Phantom enjoyed a challenge," he added slyly.

Danny swallowed with difficulty and smiled wryly. "Oh, yeah," he muttered foolishly. "I almost forgot about that."


	9. Chapter 9

Skulker led them back outside to their speeder before turning and facing Danny once more. "You are incredibly bold to come out of hiding, Danny Phantom," he said as Sam ran to the speeder and jumped in. "You do know that your presence will now be known, and the ghosts you hunted will come back to haunt you."

Danny smiled bravely. "I couldn't have it any better way," he replied.

"A bold move, for someone who was trying to ignore his destiny."

"Now that I'm realizing what it is, I'm not about to back away from it."

Skulker smiled slyly. "Then, I look forward to hunting you again, Ghost-man," he said.

Danny tapped the thermos over his shoulder. "And I look forward to catching you," he replied.

With those words said, Sam turned the speeder around and blasted off. Danny followed right behind it, morphing his legs into a ghost tail.

"Good luck defeating the ghost keeper, Danny Phantom," Skulker called out. He laughed. "You're gonna need it!"

"Okay, this is just my opinion, but that was the weirdest help we have ever gotten from someone," Sam noted, looking at her boyfriend through the window.

"He's a ghost, Sam," Danny replied. "What else can you expect?"

* * *

They continued on their way back to the Fenton Portal, this time noticing that most ghosts stared back at them with a look of familiarity on their faces. Some even grinned.

"Um, is it just me, or does it look like they remember you now?" Sam said, slightly anxiously.

Danny ignored their stares. "Just keep flying, Sam," he said. "They're not going to do anything."

"Are you sure?"

"Trust me; I've got the thermos with me; they won't try to attack yet."

The opening of the portal suddenly came into view. A circle of green ripples over invisible water hung in mid air.

"Sweet; the exit," Sam said with a sigh of relief. "Finally, I can get out of this place!"

"No offence, Sam, but what's the difference between here and in the real world now?" Danny replied. "We're pretty much just zapping to another area in the zone, you know."

"Don't remind me; at least the other side of the portal is shielded. This ghost keeper can't get us on that side."

"Not yet. Let's just be glad he didn't notice us come out this way-!"

Suddenly, an enormous ghost appeared out of nowhere and blocked their way to the portal. Sam cried in fright and slammed her foot down on the breaks, causing the speeder to come to a complete stop. Danny stopped flying as well.

"Or, maybe he _did_ notice us," Danny squeaked, staring at the red-eyed ghost.

The Ghost Keeper resumed his medieval-like form and smiled at Danny. "How nice of you to have dropped in, Daniel," he said coolly. "It wasn't too long ago that we were talking over the clouds. I hope that ghost shield trick of yours did not drain your energy too much."

"My, my, I'm touched by your concern," Danny replied sarcastically with a frown. He pointed at him. "I know your story, Ghost Keeper," he added. "I know why you hate humans and why you want my powers."

"Ah, good; we're making some progress," the Ghost Keeper announced, straightening out. "So then, considering you know how strong I am, you will-!"

_"Not_ surrender myself," Danny concluded, passing an arm before him. "I don't care what kind of deal you make; I know a liar when I see one, and I know what pure evil is like. So the answer is still no; I will _not_ give myself up to you that easily."

The Ghost Keeper did not like this answer at all. He frowned and growled behind his teeth. "You dare to defy me, puny human?" he hissed. "Did you not learn of my strength and power over this realm? You cannot defeat me; you are nothing against my awesome powers!"

"That's what a bunch of evil ghosts have said to me in the past, but that's never stopped me from proving them wrong," Danny growled back. "I don't care what you think or how powerful you are; I will _never_ give myself up to you, and you will _never_ gain my powers!"

The Ghost Keeper roared loudly and his eyes began to glow red. "Then I'm afraid you and your friend shall not pass!" he yelled.

Red ectoplasma rays shot out of his eyes and shot out at Danny. Danny tried raising a shield over himself in time, but unfortunately, only had it up halfway before he was hit in the chest and thrown backwards several feet. He groaned painfully and clenched his teeth before hugging his chest and hoping to suppress the pain.

"DANNY!"

Sam's cry caused Danny to immediately look up while gasping.

The Ghost Keeper had grabbed the speeder in his hands, after having grown several feet, and was opening the driver's door while reaching in. Sam screamed loudly in fright and backed up to the other end of the speeder.

Danny stared in horror until he could feel his anger inside begin to bubble. His eyes glowed green with fury, as his body was haloed in a green light. He clenched his fists and teeth and flew as fast as he could towards the Ghost Keeper. He raised his right fist and it began to glow green. "LEAVE HER ALONE!" he yelled furiously, throwing his fist forward and slamming it against the Ghost Keeper's chest.

The giant ghost had not expected such a powerful hit from his enemy, and was immediately thrown backwards out of control. He groaned painfully after letting the speeder go, to which Danny flew up to.

Danny fazed through the driver's door and stared worriedly at Sam. "Are you alright?" he asked.

Sam rubbed her head gingerly before looking up at him and nodding; but he had already seen the immense fear in her eyes.

Danny pulled himself out of the driver's door and glared wrathfully at the Ghost Keeper. "Don't you _dare_ get anywhere near her!" he yelled. He pulled the thermos off of his shoulder and pointed it at the ghost. "Just for scaring her, I'll show you what kind of ghost hunter I am! Game Over, Pal!"

He pressed a button on the side of the thermos and a bright ray of blue light shot out of it towards the Ghost Keeper. It immediately enveloped him and sucked him into the thermos.

Danny slammed the lid over it and looked at Sam. "Get to the portal," he instructed her. "I'll be right behind you."

Sam jumped back into the driver's seat and pressed down on the gas, speeding towards the green portal.

Danny's earpiece began to beep. _"Danny, are you and Sam alright in there?"_ Maddie's voice asked worriedly.

"We're just fine, Mom," he said. "We ran into a few problems, but nothing serious. We're on our way out right now-!"

The thermos in his hands began to vibrate violently. Danny found himself struggling to keep it still with both hands until it started to shake and exploded into a million pieces. He shouted in fright and covered his face from view. Unfortunately, this move blinded him and did not prepare him for the hit he received.

A giant fist flew into his face, sending Danny sailing backwards while groaning painfully. After rubbing his cheek, he opened his eyes and frowned at his attacker.

The Ghost Keeper frowned menacingly at him while his fists glowed red. "Do you honestly believe that your puny little _thermos_ will keep _me_ imprisoned?" his voice boomed. "You are dealing with the most powerful ghost in the Ghost Zone, Danny Phantom; not some scrawny, little spirit who takes over someone's body to steal treasures!" His eyes began to glow red again. "If you wish to defeat me properly, fight like a ghost!"

Red rays shot out of his eyes again. But this time, Danny was prepared.

His eyes began to glow a pale blue. "Fight fire with ice!" he said as blue ectoplasma ice rays were shot out his eyes.

Both the red and blue rays collided against each other with a bright flash as both ghosts used their strength to push back the other. Danny bared his teeth and pushed with all his might against the red rays, but although he seemed to be fighting more than the Ghost Keeper was, his blue rays were struggling more and more to overpower the red ones.

Sweat covered his forehead the more Danny pushed. He could feel his energy being drained incredibly fast. _Can't… give up,_ he thought. _Must… fight… back!_

The Ghost Keeper laughed. "You are foolish to fight against me, Daniel!" he said loudly. "You are nowhere near strong enough to defeat me! Yet I must say, your courage astounds me; never have I met another ghost who dared to defy me."

Danny groaned with the effort of pushing against the Ghost Keeper's power. He knew he was not strong enough to fight him yet, especially with his lack of practice, but if he let go now, the red rays would collide with him.

Unfortunately, Danny's courage was not enough to keep him strong. As had been predicted, his rays were quickly overpowered by the Ghost Keeper's, and the red rays impacted against his eyes, tossing him backwards. Danny screamed in pain and placed his hands over his eyes, instinctively trying to rub the pain out of them.

The Ghost Keeper laughed menacingly. "A blind prey makes it all the more easy to catch!" he laughed, reaching out for Danny. "You're mine, Half-ghost!"

Danny tried to open his eyes, but all he saw were mixed blurs. He was helpless to defend himself.

But just as his enemy was about to grab him, Sam's speeder swooped in to the rescue. The woman reached out of the open door and casted the Fenton ghost fishing line out, snagging onto Danny's suit in the progress. Danny felt the tug and was immediately pulled out the ghost keeper's reach. Blindly, the man reached out and grabbed the side of the speeder, holding onto it tightly as they speed towards the portal.

The Ghost Keeper yelled furiously behind them. "I will have you, Danny Phantom!" he bellowed as they sped through the portal. "Mark my words: I WILL HAVE YOU!"


	10. Chapter 10

Maddie, Jack, Jazz and Tucker waited impatiently for the Fenton speeder to come out of the portal. It had been hours since Danny and Sam had left, and after finishing their research, Tucker and Jazz came downstairs to eagerly await the return of their friends.

Maddie tapped her foot impatiently. "They've been in there too long, now," she said worriedly. "Even for Danny, it's dangerous; he hasn't used his ghost powers in years."

"Danny is a big boy now, Maddie," Jack said as-a-matter-of-factly. "We can't keep babying him forever. One of these days, we'll need to let him take care of himself without freaking out-!"

The portal suddenly flashed, and in sped the speeder. Sam landed it on the floor, where it slid across the lab and into the back wall.

"Omigosh, is Danny hurt?" Jack exclaimed fearfully, completely ignoring his last words.

Maddie waved her hand at the portal. "Close the portal, Jack!" she shouted as she ran to the speeder.

Sam pushed the door open and climbed out. Tucker reached out for her. "Sam, are you okay?" he asked worriedly. "You didn't run into any trouble, did you?"

"If you mean the Ghost Keeper by trouble, then I'd say yes, we did," Sam replied while gingerly rubbing the bruise on her head. "He blocked our way out and Danny had to fight him. He tried using the Fenton Thermos on it, but he just blew out of it."

"Where is Danny?" Maddie asked urgently.

Sam held up the Fenton fishing line, which was still glowing blue. "He got hurt, so I snagged onto him," she replied as everyone followed the line to the back of the speeder.

Maddie and Jack crouched over and stared under the back right tail of the speeder. Lying on his stomach against the floor, one arm covering his face and a glowing fishing line around his waist, was Danny, still in ghost form.

"Daniel!" Maddie exclaimed as she and her husband immediately ran around the back of the speeder and leaned over to reach for their son.

Danny moaned painfully and only shifted his head a little; but when Maddie's hands grabbed onto the line around his waist, the man began to panic and instinctively began fighting back. "Let go! Let go!" he shouted frantically, keeping his eyes shut tight.

"Calm down, Danny, just hang on," Maddie coaxed gently as Jack helped her pulled Danny out as gently as they could. "You're safe here, it's alright."

Danny still panicked. Jazz had to eventually come in and help hold him still while her brother continued to whimper and moan fearfully.

"Why are his eyes closed?" Jazz asked.

"The Ghost Keeper shot some ectoplasma rays into his eyes," Sam replied while pointing at her eyes.

"Jack, get my ghost box," Maddie instructed as she held her son's head and upper body in her arms and on her lap.

"Gotcha," Jack replied, getting to his feet and dashing off.

Danny shook his head violently while whimpering and began to rub his eyes again. His mother immediately pulled his hand away from his eyes. "Don't rub them, Danny, it'll only make it worse," she said as calmly as she could.

"It's burning my eyes out!" Danny cried painfully. "Why is it hurting so much?"

"Because you're human, Danny," Maddie replied. "Just don't rub them. I've got something in my ghost box that should help ease the pain faster." When her husband returned with the box, Maddie opened it up and pulled out an eye drop and a small container of glowing blue liquid.

"What is that stuff?" Tucker asked as he and Sam looked on.

Maddie unscrewed the covered and dipped the eye drop inside. "It's a pain reliever for ghosts," she explained. "I developed it shortly after Danny told us about his powers. It helps ease the pain of ghost injuries."

"But does it heal it?" Sam asked worriedly.

"Ghosts can heal themselves, Dear," Maddie replied. "This will just help cool the burning and Danny will be able to heal himself better." She pulled out the eye drop and put down the container. "Jasmine, hold your brother's right eye open for me, please," she instructed her daughter.

Jazz placed her fingers carefully over her brother's eyelids and held them apart. Danny panted loudly through his teeth as she did. His eye was revealed to be glowing red.

"This may feel like a bad burn for a few seconds, Danny," Maddie whispered soothingly to her son. "Just hang on and it will be finished in a few minutes. Just three drops in each eye."

She gently squeezed the eye drop and out dropped a glowing blue drop of liquid. It landed directly in Danny's eye.

Danny's body contorted as he groaned loudly in pain behind his teeth. He tried closing his eye but Jazz held it open.

"Two," Maddie counted, dropping the next one, which only made Danny scream louder. "Three…"

"IT'S MAKING IT WORSE!" Danny cried in agony. "STOOOOPPP!"

The third drop fell into his eye, making Danny cry out even more. He kicked and slammed his fists into the floor, causing the ground to vibrate. Sam and Tucker held each other tightly.

Jazz opened Danny's left eye this time and Maddie repeated the operation. Danny screamed loudly and broke into sobs.

"… Thrrreee," Maddie finished, dropping the last tear in. She tossed the eye drop aside and hugged her son tightly, holding him near her heart as Danny sobbed. "It's all done, Sweetie; it's aaaalll done," she hushed him.

Danny placed his arms around her and for once did not care that his mother was still rocking him at twenty-five years old; all that mattered at that moment was that the pain in his eyes would stop.

* * *

A few hours went by, in which Maddie instructed that Danny got some rest. It would take several hours before the drops had an effect, so while her son was brought upstairs to rest, the Fentons returned downstairs to have a bite to eat and then sit in the living room and listen to what information Tucker and Sam had discovered.

Sam went first, and explained about the information they received from Skulker. It took several minutes to over an hour for her to go into detail, and afterwards she was asked by Danny's parents to explain how they had gotten attacked.

"If I get my hands on that ghost who hurt my son, it'll be the last thing he feels," Jack said gravely, narrowing his eyes and squeezing his fists.

"Good luck on trying to even _touch_ him, Mr. Fenton," Sam answered. "He's too powerful for any of your gadgets. Danny wasn't even able to hold him for more than ten seconds in the Fenton Thermos."

"But he _was_ able to hurt him, wasn't he?" Tucker pointed out.

"Well, yeah, but that was only a punch. And the only time it actually hurt him was when I got into danger."

Jazz crossed her arms. "That's nothing new," she said seriously. "Danny's powers only become stronger when they're fuelled by his emotions. We all know how unstable they used to be when he was young, remember?"

"Not only that, but he's stronger when the people he cares about are put into harm's way," Maddie added.

Sam frowned. "So what are we going to do; deliberately use ourselves as bait and test how strong Danny really is?" she asked, unimpressed.

"That's kind of risky, isn't it?" Tucker pointed out anxiously.

Sam looked at him and opened her mouth to reply.

"Not to mention stupid."

Tucker and Sam raised their heads and turned to the stairs, just as the Fentons had done the same. Walking down slowly while holding up a wet cloth to his eyes was Danny, now transformed back to normal.

"How are your eyes, Danny?" Maddie asked gently.

Danny opened one of his eyes and looked at his mother. Though they were still rimmed in red, they had returned to normal and were their original blue. "They still burn, but they should be completely healed by tomorrow morning," he replied. He reached the bottom of the stairs and looked at the others. "Sam and Tucker are right," he said. "Putting yourselves in danger just to see how strong I am is not only dangerous, but the stupidest thing you guys can do," he said sternly. "Testing my emotions is the worst thing anyone can possible try to test. Especially when I'm a ghost. My emotions are double when I'm in that form, which makes things more unexpected."

"Then what should we do?" Jazz asked with a shrug. "The Ghost Keeper's clearly stronger than you. How will you be able to defeat him?"

"I've been fighting ghosts ten times more experienced than me," Danny replied, pointing at himself. "Every time I did, someone asked if I was sure I could do it. I've never been one hundred percent sure of what I could do, Jazz, but what I was sure about was what I couldn't let happen, and that's putting everyone I cared about into danger…" He paused and looked at the floor in fear. "Or…"

They waited for him to finish, but he never did. So Tucker stood up. "Or what, Danny?" he asked.

Danny looked up at him with great worry in his eyes. "Or… let you all… die," he added with great difficulty, looking at the floor again.

No one spoke. Tucker sat down again beside Sam, hoping the silence would end.

Danny rubbed his arm. "I don't mean to put anyone in danger," he said. "Or myself, for that matter. I've just… got a bad knack for bringing danger wherever I go."

"Last time I checked, every hero does," Tucker said with a small grin. "We don't mind the danger, Danny. You should know that by now."

"I do know that. But it's not you that I'm worried will mind it, Tucker; it's me. Someone always got hurt or something while I was fighting, or just managed to avoid getting killed. But I already know how brave the people of Amity Park are. I'm not worried about their amount of courage… It's mine that I'm worried about. I haven't fought ghosts for nearly five years. Even though I remember doing all of those things, it almost feels like a distant dream." Danny stared at his feet in shame. "I don't… think I completely remember what it's like to be brave," he said quietly.

Sam and Tucker looked at each other before sharing a grin and looking at their best friend again. "Danny, that's what we're here for," Sam announced, catching Danny's attention. She held out her hands. "To remind you of how brave you really are. We'll do whatever it takes to put it back into your head."

"And if that means fighting a big fat ghost and saving the whole town again, just like old times, then count me in!" Tucker agreed, swinging his fist through the air. He paused for a moment and then frowned softly while pointing at Danny. "But no phasing into my body anymore; I really hate it when you do that."

Danny managed to crack a timid grin while his parents, sister and girlfriend laughed.

Jazz clasped her hands together and caught everyone's attention. "Okay, then let's move on!" she said. "Sam's filled us in on everything Skulker told you two, Danny, so it's about time that Tucker and I tell you what we found."

"Though it's not much of anything, compared to what you and Sam got," Tucker replied, pulling out his pager. He held it up and pressed a button. "Okay, so a lot of ghosts are obviously incredibly freaked out by the GK, but some of the bravest dared to put down info about him." He looked at Danny. "Apparently, all those ghosts we saw at the fair that shot up into the sky, that's his energy. All the ghosts that he sucked them from. They mould together to create a mega spirit."

"That's probably the most helpful advice we found, though," Jazz added with a shrug. "The other thing was that, when he was alive, as in human, the Ghost Keeper liked to train in the dark arts and fought a lot with a sword."

Danny held up the cloth to his eyes again. "So the Ghost Keeper's known how to summon magic even before he _got_ ghost powers," he said. "And if he can fight with a sword, then that means that he can combine the two together." He frowned and bared his teeth. "Great," he groaned. "I'm not nearly as powerful as he is, and I don't know how to fight with a sword. How perfect is that?"

"But you _do_ know how to perform the Ghostly Wail," Tucker pointed out. "Not to mention use Cryokenisis."

"Cry_what?"_ Danny asked flatly.

Tucker raised an eyebrow and eyed him stupidly. "It's your own power, and you don't even know what it's called?" he said. "The power where all your cold ghost sense acts as an ice ray, Danny; your Ghostly Ice!"

"Oh! _That!" _Danny exclaimed. He shrugged. "I haven't used that power in five years, Tuck; do you honestly expect me to remember that name?" He frowned and placed one hand on his hip while the other held the wet cloth over his right eye. "Besides, a lot of good _that_ power's done already. Sheesh."

"What does that mean?"

"Hello," Danny chanted while removing the cloth from his face and pointing at his eyes. _"That's_ the power that got me into this mess, Tucker."

Tucker shrugged in reply. "Doesn't mean you can't still use it," he said.

Sam stood up. "And you can duplicate yourself," she added.

Danny stared at her in disbelief. "Are you guys asking me to _kill_ myself or something?" he exclaimed. "What part of _I haven't used my powers in five years_ don't you understand?" He held up one finger. "Number one, Ghostly Ice has already proven how weak it can be against that guy; and number two, I have to be careful when I use the Ghostly Wail. I may be getting stronger, but again, I haven't actually _used_ my powers for anything since I graduated. Ghostly Wail even _less_ than anything else. I can normally only use that maybe once or twice, but after that, I'm too weak and I turn back into a human."

Maddie rubbed her chin. "So if Danny's going to use that power, he's going to have to choose the right time carefully," she said.

Sam pointed at Danny. "And how about duplicating yourself?" she repeated. "You can make double the amount of damage."

Danny had his arms crossed now. He shrugged in reply. "I could, but again, I'm lacking the practice," he replied. "And two days of practice is not enough to get back into the Ghost Busting feeling."

Tucker smiled slyly. "You didn't exactly answer Sam's question, Danny," he said. "Can you duplicate yourself or _not?" _

Danny stared at him in silence before shooting him an irritated glare. Immediately after, his body was haloed in a white glow and split into two, creating two identical Dannys.

Jack opened his eyes wide. "Whoa," he said in bewilderment as his wife covered her mouth.

The two Dannys looked at Tucker. "Does this answer the question?" they asked simultaneously.

Tucker stared at them with an uncomfortable look on his face. "Man, that is _never_ going to stop bugging me," he shuddered while Sam laughed.

Danny, the one still holding the wet cloth, held up a finger. "My lack of practice has kept me from properly multiplying, though," he said. "While I can make an extra copy of myself-!"

"-we can't split a second time without disastrous results," the second Danny finished, holding up two fingers this time. "Either we grow two heads-!"

"-or two of something else that would make us look weird," the first Danny finished.

Jazz clamped her hands over her ears. "Could you both go back to being just one Danny, please?" she exclaimed. "Having yourself finish each other's sentences is driving me crazy!"

"Oo; and it only took us twenty-five-years to do that!" the second Danny said with a smile, looking at his twin. The first held up his hand and high-fived the second; when he did, both merged into one Danny once more.

Tucker pulled out his pager pen and wrote things down on the screen of his pager. "Okay; so Danny can use all of his powers," he said, "He can duplicate himself once, use Ghostly Ice, and although he can only use it sparingly, Danny can also use the Ghostly Wail to his advantage." He looked up at his best friend. "Anything else?"

"How about this Ultimate Control Gift that Skulker said you had?" Sam noted, catching Danny's attention. "You could use that, right?"

"Sure," Danny replied sarcastically. "Once I learn what the _heck_ it is. The only thing I can control, Sam, is someone else's body, and that's only if I take possession of them. As far as I know, this UCG that I've got doesn't exist."

"But if a _ghost_ told you that it did, then it probably does, Sweetie," Maddie pointed out. "Maybe you should practice working on figuring out how it works. Maybe it could help defeat the Ghost Keeper."

Danny looked at her, but before he could reply, the clock in the corner rang eleven times.

Tucker sighed loudly and tucked his pager away. "We can deal with practice tomorrow," he said while standing up. "For now, we should all hit the hay. My folks are probably gonna be wondering where the heck I am by now."

"You're twenty-five, Tuck," Danny pointed out with a chuckle.

"Yeah; but my best friend's a ghost, and our town's in the Ghost Zone."

Danny grinned. "Point taken."

Tucker winked in reply and walked to the door. "I'll walk ya home, Sam," he said. "We can come back tomorrow morning when Danny's finished healing himself."

They said goodnight to the Fentons before Jack, Maddie and Jazz walked up the stairs to their bedrooms.

Danny watched as Tucker opened the front door and walked out, followed closely by Sam. The two of them turned around once out on the front steps and looked at Danny.

"Thanks again, guys," Danny said softly. "For… always backing me up… no matter how stupid I can get."

"We've been your best friends since, like, forever, man," Tucker replied with a smile. "We've been through too much with you to just abandon you now."

Danny stared at the ground. "Even… even after I've abandoned you guys for the last four years," he said heavily.

Sam leaned over and planted a soft kiss on his cheek. Danny looked at her once she had leaned back.

"Best friends don't pay attention to the things that already passed, Danny," she said. "We only pay attention to the present."

"And that's standing by your side, no matter what," Tucker added.

Danny blinked a few times and smiled weakly.

Sam and Tucker smiled back before turning and walking down the steps. Tucker saluted him. "Later Days, dude," he said. "Get some rest, kay?"

Danny raised a hand and waved as they walked down the sidewalk. "Kay," he replied. "Night, guys."

"Night, Danny," Sam said before they walked out of sight.


	11. Chapter 11

Morning arrived faster than any of them had honestly hoped it would. Tucker ate a rushed breakfast before grabbing his gear and running to the garage to get his skooter.

"Are you off to Danny's house again, Tucker?" his mother asked as she peered out the front door.

"Yep; we've got some serious practicing to do," he replied, climbing onto his skooter.

"At a time like this? But a bunch of ghosts just attacked the town, Dear."

"Yeah, I know; that's what makes it interesting."

His mother only rolled her eyes. "Just don't go doing something stupid with him again, okay?" she said, disappeared into the house.

Tucker rolled his own eyes once she had left. "At least she didn't keep bragging on about how he's such a secretive _boy_, again," he muttered to himself before driving down the street.

* * *

Sam had just arrived at the Fenton's house when Tucker came around the corner. The black man honked his skooter horn before coming to a stop next to her. "What's the fizzle, shizzle?" he said while removing his helmet.

"You're twenty-five, and you _still_ say things like that?" Sam said while raising an eyebrow.

"Lighten up, Sam; it's just for fun," Tucker replied while tucking the keys to his skooter away.

"Hard to lighten up when one, I'm a _goth;_ and two, we're on the verge of turning into ghosts, Tucker," Sam replied while holding up her arms.

"Danny seems to lighten your mood nicely."

Sam froze at these words and blushed. She smiled wryly. "Eh, there's exceptions, you know," she replied with a nervous laugh.

Tucker smiled cleverly. "That's what I thought," he replied as they walked up the stairs. "Did your parents ask you where you were going?"

"I told them Danny's. They're starting to like him again, especially when he made them dinner a few weeks ago. Apparently, Astronauts need to know how to cook."

"Wow, _that's_ new. So they don't mind that you two are going out now?"

"Not really, though they've constantly tried to get me to wear something _pink_ out on a date." Sam stuck out her tongue. "_So_ not going to happen. How about your folks?"

"Dad was still sleeping, and thankfully, Mom didn't bother asking much this time," Tucker replied. They stopped in front of the door. "Is it just me, or is hiding Danny's identity from our parents really hard?"

"It would be a lot harder if his family wasn't a bunch of ghost cooques," Sam replied as she rang the doorbell.

"Point taken."

They waited until someone opened the door for them. Jazz appeared on the other end, her hair tied up in a ponytail. She smiled. "Morning, guys!" she said.

Sam and Tucker walked into the house. "You're sure cheerful this morning, despite the fact that we're on the verge of a mega ghost war," Sam noticed.

"Did your parents do something?" Tucker wondered.

Jazz only smiled some more. "No, they're busy putting together some new ecto suits for us," she replied.

"Ecto suits?" Sam echoed. "You mean they actually expect us to be doing some _fighting?"_

"Actually, they expect the whole town to be joining in once Danny Phantom shows his face."

"Speaking of which," Tucker said, "Where _is_ Danny?"

Jazz' smile brightened, and it was then that Sam and Tucker realized what she was grinning about. They smiled as well. "He's training?" Sam guessed.

* * *

Jazz led them down to the lab in the basement and they peered around the corner. The entire basement was filled with traps, pop-up walls and weapons coming in and out of slots. Lazers blasted in every direction.

And in the midst of it all was the one ghost who dared to take every single trap on at once.

Danny zoomed back and forth, shooting ghost rays at fake targets and putting up different shaped plasma shields. He punched at bags and kicked them off of their chains. His dodged lazers and zigzagged passed bullets. Sometimes, he did plenty of these all at once.

"Pretty amazing, huh?" Jazz said with a grin as Sam and Tucker looked on in awe.

Danny shot ghost ice rays from his eyes and made a nearby gun explode.

Tucker covered his head as pieces flew about. "Man, when Danny said he hasn't had practice, I didn't think he would actually be _kidding,"_ he said. "He sounded pretty serious yesterday."

"He was," Jazz replied as they continued to watch Danny fight. "He never spoke once about practicing while at NASA, whenever he emailed me. And if I asked him over MSN if he had been doing anything with them, he'd only ignore the question or answer with a simple yet immediate _no." _

"But then, why's he looking like he does this every day?"

"He was up all night. He couldn't sleep, so he figured he'd do some training."

Sam watched her best friend fly in zigzags while attacking fake enemies. Danny even managed to duplicate himself once in order to perform two acts at the same time. He turned intangible and even went invisible from time to time. He fought the training exercises as though they were actually enemies he had fought throughout high school.

Danny came to a stop at the center of the room and floated in place. He closed his eyes and remained incredibly still.

Jazz squealed softly and ducked a little more behind the stairs, only allowing her eyes to be visible. "Oh, this is my favourite part," she said quietly as the other two mimicked her actions. "Danny's focusing all of his energy on one shot in order to take everything down."

"I don't remember him ever having a power like that," Sam wondered.

"He didn't," Jazz replied. "I asked about it last night, and he told me that he's actually just trying to feel for this ultimate control gift that he's got and trying to command everything in the room. Everything's mechanical, so it should be pretty easy for him to control."

"But focusing all of his energy would mean reverting to human form once the shot's done," Tucker pointed out. "That means that this would only be used as a last resort, Jazz."

"That's what I told him."

"And what did he say?"

"He told me to stuff it and go back to bed."

Sam and Tucker looked at Jazz in surprise. Jazz nodded her head. "Danny didn't want me near when he performed the trick," she said. "He said that it made him lose his focus. So I went upstairs and never found out what had happened. All I heard was a dull boom sound… and then silence. I don't even know if Danny turned back into a human after that."

They stared up at Danny again and fell silent. The ghost began to glow white as a mysterious breeze began to blow around him, making his hair wave. Danny raised his head yet kept his eyes closed and spread out his arms while opening his hands.

Everything in the lab began to rattle or hover. Jazz, Sam and Tucker gasped softly before staring up at Danny again.

Danny held his eyes shut tightly now, while clenching his teeth. Plasma waves of white light began pulsing from him like radio soundwaves. Danny slowly folded his arms around himself, as well as his legs, and then, as fast as he could, threw them back out, spreading them out in separate directions, and released the energy he had stored inside of him during those moments.

The lab filled with a blinding white light. Jazz, Sam and Tucker quickly ducked out of sight and shut their eyes. A loud _VAVOOM_-like sound caused a strong wind to blow passed them, knocking Tucker's hat off of his head.

They waited a moment before daring to peek around the corner again.

Danny had his arms up as if trying to order all of the objects in the lab to obey him. He groaned at the effort of doing so, but after a few mere moments, he gave in to weakness and let his arms drop to his sides.

The glow around his body and all of the hovering objects in the lab ceased, and immediately, everything fell to the ground with loud _crashes. _

Danny floated down slowly and heaved a heavy yet tired sigh before raising a hand to his forehead and moaning weakly. Once he had fallen to his knees, the familiar halo formed around his waist and intersected his body, transforming him back into the black-haired twenty-five-year-old that he was.

Jazz sighed sadly and shook her head. "Another fail," she said disappointingly.

Tucker and Sam looked at her for a moment before rushing out and running to Danny.

Danny took no heed of them until Sam reached down and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Danny?" she said softly.

Danny uncovered his face and stared in defeat at the floor. "How is it that I can do everything else perfectly," he said, "But when it comes to trying to control everything in the room, I just can't do it? I just don't have enough energy to perform something that huge."

"Don't beat yourself up, Danny," Tucker said gently. "I mean, you just learned about that power yesterday. And like Skulker said; not many ghosts have been able to control that power."

"But you don't understand, Tucker; I _need_ to control this power," Danny said, looking up at his best friend. "I _need_ to unlock it. If I don't, then the Ghost Keeper will kill me, take all of my powers including this one, and everyone else in Amity Park will die and turn into ghosts." He stared at the floor again. "I just… I can't let that happen."

Sam and Tucker helped him back up to his feet and dusted him off. "And you won't," Sam said with a grin. "There's never been a challenge that Danny Phantom couldn't face. We'll eventually unlock it, Danny; you just need to be patient."

"Sam, I have less than 48 hours to learn this power," Danny announced. "I don't have _time_ for patience!" He slapped his fists down against the palm of his hand. "I need to learn it _now, _I need to unlock it _now, _and I _need_ to _use_ it _now-!"_

A wave of dizziness suddenly over came him and Danny moaned weakly before swaying and falling backwards.

Luckily for him, though, Jazz was there to catch him. Danny opened his eyes halfway and looked up at her.

Jazz smiled back warmly. "Before you do all of that _now_," she said, "Maybe it would be a good idea if you came upstairs and had some breakfast, Little Brother. My treat."

Danny blinked before grinning foolishly. "That could be helpful," he said as they helped him back up and led him to the stairs.


	12. Chapter 12

Jack and Maddie came downstairs shortly after the others had finished their breakfast. They discussed the matter of the ecto suits and how they had created them each one to their liking. Tucker insisted on seeing his immediately-even Sam wanted to see her suit.

Jazz and Danny, on the other hand, did not want to see the suits right away. So while their parents managed to pull Danny's best friends into their world for a short period of time, Jazz took her brother upstairs.

Danny stared at himself in the mirror in his room and looked down at his clothes. Ever since he had left Amity Park, his wardrobe had changed. The jeans he wore were not as baggy as they once were, and he hardly wore a t-shirt if he was not wearing his dark blue NASA long-sleeved sweater over it.

While studying, he thought of it as a new look to the old Danny Fenton; a fresh start as a new person, someone no one knew, and someone no one would care about beating up.

Someone who, while wearing the NASA uniform, looked exactly like everyone else in the school.

But now that he finally understood what his destiny was and who he truly was, the look bored him.

He smoothed out his NASA shirt and sighed tiredly. "Though I love the look, it just doesn't feel like me anymore," he said sadly, crossing his arms and staring at himself. "I mean, what ghost hero goes walking around the streets wearing a _uniform?"_

"I thought you liked the clothes, Danny," his sister said, walking into his room.

Danny watched her set something down on his bed before staring at his reflection again. "I do," he replied. "It makes me feel like I'm someone important, even when I'm not in ghost form. It makes me feel like I've finally gotten to where I could be. To where I could reach." He stared down at himself. "But… coming back home and hanging with Sam and Tucker again… And seeing how _their_ wardrobe hasn't changed… it just made me feel like I've gone and done something completely dumb. While Sam and Tucker aren't afraid of being who they are and wearing whatever they like to wear… I'm here, wearing an astronaut uniform, just to look more important." He sighed sadly as Jazz placed her hands on his shoulders. "I feel like I'm back in high school, trying to fit in with the cool people."

"Danny, you know what I think about you?" Jazz said with a smile. "You work too hard at trying to be yourself. You need to relax, cool down…" She let him go and walked over to the package on the bed. "Even in this difficult time, you need to find a way to just let it all go." She picked up the package and held it up. "Which is why I went to the trouble to get you this."

Danny grabbed the package and stared at it. "Wh-what is it?" he wondered, looking at his sister.

Jazz placed her hands behind her back. "Oh, just a little _welcome home_ present from your big sister, that's all," she said. "Go on, Danny; open it up before everyone else comes barging in on us. We never get a chance alone, you know."

Danny grinned weakly before opening the package. He pulled back the tissue paper covering the gift, and once he had discovered what it was, a large smile spread over his lips and his eyes brightened. "Oh, you have _got_ to be kidding me," he said with a soft laugh, raising his eyes and looking at his sister.

Jazz simply smiled in return.

Danny bared his teeth and pulled out a t-shirt from the package. It was white, with red sleeves, a red collar and the red D-shaped symbol that adorned Danny's ghost suit.

The next thing he pulled out was a pair of baggy jeans, the kind that could cover your entire foot from view.

"T-shirt and baggy jeans?" Danny said with a laugh, letting the package go and holding up the clothes. He held them against him. "I'm in Heaven, man! I haven't worn this kind of stuff in _years!_ Ever since graduation!" He stared at the jeans again. "And even if I had wanted to, they'd _never_ let these kind of jeans inside NASA; _way_ too risky. Could get caught up in the equipment." He looked at Jazz again. "Where did you get these, Jazz?"

Jazz shrugged with a smile. "I bought them," she replied. "I figured you needed a break from looking all spiff and span and military like, so I went out and bought you a pair of baggy jeans, the kind you wore when you were in high school, remember?

"And I remembered that stupid t-shirt you wore nearly _every_ day," Jazz continued. "So I went to the mall and got you an adult size. There was no logo on it, so I got hooked up with a friend of mine who does professional shirt iron-ons, and got him to put on the logo of Danny Phantom in red." Jazz smiled wryly and giggled. "I sorta had to tell him that you were a DP fanatic. Couldn't tell him who you really were, right?"

Danny laughed again and stared at the clothes. "These are totally worth coming home for!" he said. He looked at his sister again. "Thanks, Jazz."

"Don't thank me yet, Danny," Jazz replied, digging under Danny's bed. She pulled out a pair of red bulldog sneakers and held them up to her brother. "I also tracked down these for you. They come in your size, believe it or not. I figured those lamo black business shoes you have on are killing your feet when you run, so I got you your favourite style. It wasn't easy, you know; these things don't come in red anymore."

Danny snatched the shoes from her and kissed them. "Hello, Cloud 9!" he whispered heavenly.

Jazz placed her hands on his shoulders and pushed him towards the hallway. "Well, don't just stand here making out with them; go try them on!" she insisted. "I wanna make sure they fit properly!"

* * *

It took several minutes before Danny returned to his bedroom. Jazz was still waiting there for him.

He ran in, wearing his t-shirt, baggy pants and favourite red sneakers. He tossed his other clothes through the air, where they landed on his luggage. Danny spread out his arms. "Move over, Daniel Fenton, and make way for the one and only _Danny_ Fenton!" he exclaimed, making his sister laugh. "I'm still alive, dude!"

He turned and ran into his sister's arms, making Jazz shout in surprise. Both fell against the bed in laughter.

"Man, I don't know how to thank you, Jazz!" Danny said happily as they sat down together. "I've never felt this good when I was supposed to be totally freaked out!"

Jazz giggled and patted his back. "No problem, Danny," she replied. "I'm just happy to finally see my brother smile again. It's been a long time since you did that properly." She looked at a picture frame on Danny's lamp stand and picked it up. "And it's been a _really_ long time since the last time we were able to spend this much time alone, without our friends interrupting."

"Or Mom and Dad," Danny added.

They studied the photo. It was a picture Jazz had taken of them both when they were children. Danny had been only eight years of age at the time, and Jasmine was ten. While their parents were inside discussing "serious" ghost matters, Jazz had taken her little brother outside to play games. She bought a disposable camera and they took turns taking pictures of each other or different items they found in the yard. The picture that was currently in the frame was one that Jazz had attempted on taking of the two of them. It was slightly lopsided, but their smiles were clearly visible. Jazz had her other arm wrapped around her brother's waist while smiling brightly up at the camera. Danny had both of his arms wrapped around his sister's neck. He was smiling as though he was midway through a laugh.

Danny grinned at the picture, remembering that day so long ago.

"Life seemed so much simpler back then, don't you think?" Jazz said softly. "When Mom and Dad were busy, we'd go for scavenger hunts in the backyard or dig for worms or something. I never really liked doing it, but it was the perfect way to keep your attention off of everything else that was bothering you."

"Remember that bug you made me eat?" Danny recalled, pointing at his sister.

Jazz laughed and pointed back at him. "I didn't make you eat it; _you_ told me you would eat it! I told you not to!"

Danny giggled childishly. "Oh, yeah, now I remember," he said. "Later on, I threw it back up on your favourite sweater."

"Danny, you are _so_ gross!"

Her brother laughed again before falling down against his bed. "We certainly took things for granted back then," he said. "I never really treasured those moments, when you would keep my attention off of Mom and Dad's ghost stuff and the bullies at school…" His smile slowly diminished. "I never seriously cherished any of those times when my big sister didn't act like a know-it-all or a fink…" His eyes saddened. "Or… or like the sister of a… ghost," he added lowly.

Jazz looked at him as Danny sat back down and stared at his feet. "I never should have taken those times for granted," he said. "Because now I blinked, and it's all behind me. I can't change it. I can't take back all the things that happened, all the things that changed me… all the times that I pushed you away from me. I never relished those moments, but if I had the chance, I would have gone back and warned myself never to take _you_ for granted… or anything you told me…"

Jazz smiled warmly and placed an arm around her brother. "I'd rather you didn't," she said as Danny looked at her. "Because changing one thing in the past could change the entire future. It would change who you are now." Jazz kissed Danny's cheek and then rubbed his head. "And I'd much rather keep the little brother I have now than get one that never took me for granted my entire life."

Danny placed a hand on his cheek where Jazz had kissed it, but he did not wipe it off like he normally would. He simply grinned in reply.

Jazz smiled back until her eyes narrowed and she pressed a finger against Danny's chest. "But you still owe me for throwing up that bug on my favourite sweater, Brat," she said behind her teeth.

Danny smiled slyly in reply. "I love you too, Jasmine," he replied before she punched him playfully in the shoulder.


	13. Chapter 13

Everyone was still busy in the upstairs laboratory when Danny and Jazz finally decided to come and join them.

They rode up the elevator and then walked up the last set of stairs. Danny nearly tripped over his pants, sending them both into the wall. Jazz giggled. "You need to learn some balance, Danny," she said.

"I need to learn how to _walk_ in these things again," Danny replied, hoisting up his pants. "I forgot how low these things can go, man."

They walked up a few more steps before Danny's ghost sense came out as thick mist. He gasped softly and then hugged himself, trying to control the shiver.

"Are you okay?" Jazz wondered.

"Y-yeah," Danny replied. "I'm just not used to the feeling I get when I feel a ghost nearby yet. With the ghost zone all around us, it's hard to not feel this way without it going out of whack."

They walked up to the sliding door and watched as it slid into the wall and allowed them passage. On the other side was the Fenton observatory, or the second laboratory, where Jazz and Danny's parents were hard at work, perfecting the ecto suits.

Sam and Tucker were busy testing their out.

Tucker punched and kicked the air while Sam tried out different modes on the suit. These included intangibility, invisibility, ectoplasmic blasts and flying.

"Man, these suits are even cooler than the one they made back when Danny was fourteen," Tucker mentioned, looking at Sam. "And now it's _our_ turn to try them out!"

"I'm not usually for this whole fighting thing, but I do love to kick a few ghost butts every now and then," Sam agreed. "And they even perfected the energy drainer that the last one had!"

"I've got a feeling that this will be the best ghost bustin' job ever," Tucker said with an excited grin.

Maddie looked up from her work with Jack. "Don't get too used to it, though," she said. "We still need to run a few tests on them." The presence of her two children suddenly caught her attention. She smiled warmly at them and waved. "Hey, Darlings! Good to see you two are up to join the fun!"

Tucker and Sam turned to face the doorway and noticed Danny's new attire. While Sam smiled with delight, Tucker laughed and climbed out of his suit. "Ha, ha, ha! It's the original Danny Fenton!" he exclaimed, leaping to the ground just as Sam climbed out of her suit. Both ran over to Danny. "You look Snazzy, Danny! Back in the old pants, huh?"

"Just felt like updating my look, that's all," Danny replied with a chuckle.

Tucker gave him a high-five. "Update, downdate, all the same to me!" he said. "Booyah!"

"I see you fit perfectly in the clothes Jazz bought you," his mother noted. "She thought you'd like them as a coming home gift."

"And _they_ fit perfectly on _me," _Danny added. His pants slid down a bit, but he quickly caught them before they went too far. "Uh, sort of, at least," he added with a wry grin, making Tucker and Sam laugh.

"Sorta's good enough for me," Jack replied without looking up from his work. "As long as they don't fall _too_ far from the trunk. Say, Danny, could you lend me a hand, here?"

Danny immediately rushed over and leaned over his father's shoulder. "What's up?" he asked.

"I seemed to have dropped a few screws into this suit's body," Jack replied. "I think they slipped all the way to the bottom. Would you be able to take them out, please? They'll rattle up the system if they stay there, and the whole point to the stealth part of the suit will be useless. No use surprising ghosts if you sound like a bag full of marbles."

"Sure thing, Dad," Danny replied with a soft laugh. He squatted down and made his arm intangible.

"By the way, have any of you seen my glasses?" Jack wondered aloud. "At my age, it's impossible to fix anything right without those stupid pieces of glass."

Danny chuckled as he reached into the foot of the suit. "Try checking your head, Dad," he said.

Jack froze and reached up to his forehead. He felt his reading glasses. He gave his son an irritated look while making everyone else laugh. "Children these days," he muttered while returning to work.

The others walked over to the three Fentons. "Okay, so we've got the ectosuits on the road to perfection," Sam announced. "And whenever he's ready, Danny Phantom will come out of hiding and show Amity Park that they've still got some guts."

"If anyone _in_ Amity Park is brave enough to leave their front door, that is," Tucker added. "The news reel from this morning gave away pretty much everything that's happening. At least from the point of view of someone who has no idea what's going on." He cleared his throat and imitated a news spokesman. "Amity Park has been infested by ghosts once again, and for no apparent reason. It seems as though the dome surrounding the town creates a boundary that protects Amity Park from the Ghost Zone on the other side."

"At least they got _that_ part right," Maddie mumbled.

"Now, they're just waiting for Danny Phantom to come save the day, just like all the other times."

Danny continued to search for the remaining screws. "Yeah, well let's just hope they don't notice how much practice I need," he said. "The Ghost Keeper is like a whole new foe. My powers are not as great as his, I don't know any of his moves or attacks and even if I did, the only one that I could perform that would have any effect on him is a gift that I can't even activate."

"It doesn't mean that you won't be able to," Jazz noted. "Did you see how well you trained this morning?"

"I'll admit I've still got some moves," her brother replied. "But you saw how bad I did at trying to find the energy to perform the Ultimate Control Gift. Even if I _can_ activate it, I'll revert back to human afterwards because it takes so much energy out of me. If I even started to control everything in the lab, then I immediately lost control afterwards because it just sucks the juice right out of the orange, if you get my drift."

"That was _you_ making that noise in the lab?" Maddie said while looking at her son, almost as though she did not know.

Danny looked up at her until he noticed his father frowning. "You didn't go make another mess in there, did you?" Jack said.

His twenty-five-year-old son smiled wryly while baring his teeth. "I'll clean it up eventually," he replied.

Maddie stood up and twisted her wrench around her hand. "Well, so far, everything's working," she said. She looked at Danny. "We figured that we'd each need an ectosuit in case anything goes wrong," she said as Danny pulled out the last screw. "I've got a feeling that, even though he's a ghost, the Ghost Keeper will be able to break past your ghost shield."

"Considering how strong he is compared to me, I wouldn't be surprised if he did," Danny replied as he placed the screws into a jar. "The only thing that worries me is that everyone turns into a ghost. As long as that shield is up, everyone's safe."

There was a low rumble outside which shook the house. Everyone stood up and immediately ran to the windows.

"That sounded like thunder," Jazz said. "But there're no clouds in the sky."

"There's no _sky_ to hang them in," Tucker replied. He looked at Sam. "We should go out there and check it out, though. It looks like people are beginning to get a little curious."

Sam agreed and looked at Danny. "You ready to go out for the first time in four years, Phantom?" she asked with a grin.

Danny smiled back. "Even if I had a choice, I'd say yes," he replied. He walked off a few ways and stood up straight. "Time to go ghost!"

The haloes of light wrapped around his body and then intersected with it until Danny had completely transformed. Once his black hair had turned white and his blue eyes turned green, he looked back at his family. "I may be out of practice, but it doesn't mean that I'm not willing to kick some butt," he said.

Danny was about to take a step when the alarms went off._ "Warning; ghost in the facility. Warning; ghost in the facility." _

All at once, several large weapons popped out of the floor and the ceiling and pointed their deadly ghost rays at Danny. The man shrieked in fright and immediately transformed back to normal. The weapons returned into their slots and the alarms stopped.

Danny wiped his forehead and looked at his mother with a frown. "Maybe it would be safer for me if I transformed _outside,_" he said dryly.

Maddie smiled innocently and shrugged while Jazz, Sam and Tucker choked on laughs.

* * *

Tucker had been right; the town was waking, and its people were indeed discovering just how curious they truly were. Although the events from the day before caused them all to take refuge indoors, everyone knew how things worked.

Danny, Sam and Tucker walked about the town cautiously, holding defensive weapons around their waists. Although most people were out by now, they were all still taking cautious steps and tried to stay out of sight.

Danny's ghost sense went off again. He hugged himself and shivered. "Brrr; I _really_ need to get used to this feeling again," he said.

Tucker pointed his gun in one direction before stepping out from around the building they were hiding beside. "Dan, you have your thermos ready?" he asked.

Danny tapped the new thermos that was sitting over his shoulder. Sam stared about through spy glasses at the streets around them. "These glasses aren't registering any ghosts yet," she said. "At least, not inside the shield."

Danny stepped out into the street by Tucker. "So, remind me how you guys were able to keep everyone believing that I was still around to save them all these years," he said.

Tucker put down his gun. "We just hunted ghosts when no one was looking," he replied. "Whenever a ghost was taken down, they thought it was you. It wasn't all that hard, dude; the people in this town are not that smart, if you get my drift."

"I do, but some of them are beginning to worry me with the information they know," Danny replied with a concerned frown. "Namely a certain guy named _Dash." _

"Dash?" Sam echoed, walking out to meet them. "Come on, Danny; Dash has kept his word."

"Don't tell me he hasn't tried to blackmail you guys," Danny said with a frown.

Sam and Tucker remained silent while staring at each other. Then, they both smiled nervously at their friend. "Well, okay, we've had to force him to keep it secret a few times, yeah," Tucker replied.

Danny rolled his eyes with a groan and turned away while squeezing his fists. "I _knew_ he was too good to be true," he said through his teeth. "I know a liar when I see one, and _he's_ got a giant L written over his chest."

"Danny, now's not the greatest time to be worrying about this," Sam said as she and Tucker leaned towards him.

"Are you guys sure that they're the only two that know about this?" Danny asked worriedly. "I know I'm the one who said that they could be the only two outside my family who were allowed to remember, but earlier, you guys said that a _lot_ of people know about the Fenton Phantom."

"Dude, when we said a _lot_, we meant just Dash and Paulina," Tucker replied with a raised eyebrow. "You know those two; if word ever got out, their mouths would be yackerin' away at every person they knew."

"Tucker, you weren't any better in high school," Sam replied with a sarcastic frown.

"And you with all your ideas that got Danny into trouble."

Danny finally cracked a grin and laughed softly. "Okay, I'm feeling better now," he said, holding up his hands. "You guys can stop reminding me about why you two are my best friends, okay?"

Sam and Tucker smiled cleverly and looked at Danny until a burning arrow flew in their direction. They shouted in fright and leaped out of the way as it impacted against the pavement a few ways away.

"Holy _cow! _" Tucker exclaimed. "Where the heck did that come from?"

"Never mind _that, _" Sam said worriedly, looking about. "Where's _Danny?" _

Tucker began searching about as well. "Danny?" he exclaimed. "Danny, where are you?"

_"Right here." _

Tucker and Sam stared in the direction of the voice but again did not see anything. "Right _where, _man?" Tucker wondered.

_"Right_ here."

The outline of Danny appeared in pale blue light, and then the rest of his body faded into view. His eyes glowed green for a second or two longer until he blinked; then, they returned to their original blue.

Sam and Tucker ran up to him. "Are you alright, Danny?" Sam asked worriedly.

Danny showed his shoulder, where a cut had sliced through his shirt and his skin. "It shaved me, but I'll be fine," he replied.

"Are you sure?" Sam asked again. "Should we take you to see your mom, maybe?"

Danny did not reply. He simply fell silent and stared into Sam's eyes, wondering why he was suddenly touched by her concern.

They must have both been doing the same thing, because Tucker cleared his throat loudly and caught their attention. The black man glared at them while crossing his arms and tapping his foot impatiently. "Um, _hello_," he chanted. "I'm right _here._ You two can stare each other in the eyes when you're on a date, not in the middle of a mission, thank you."

Danny and Sam blushed with embarrassment and leaned away from each other. "Uh, sorry, Tuck," Danny apologized.

Tucker rolled his eyes and crouched down over the arrow. "You're lucky I'm the one who encouraged you two to go out," he said. "Or else I'd be pretty teed off right now." He picked the arrow up and stood back up. "Danny, check this out; there's some kind of symbol on this thing."

Danny and Sam rushed over. Tucker handed the arrow to Danny, who studied it silently.

The head of the arrow had a carving that resembled the eye of a dragon.

"Hey, that looks oddly familiar," Sam said as she rubbed her chin thoughtfully.

"It _should_ be," Danny replied. "It's the symbol of the Royal Dragon family."

"The Royal _Dragons? _" Tucker echoed. "You mean that prince and princess that rule that medieval realm in the Ghost Zone?"

"Yeah," Danny said.

"Oh, perfect," Sam muttered, looking at the ghost glasses she had. "These things aren't working."

Danny looked at her for a moment before continuing. "But then, that would mean that this arrow wasn't actually meant to harm us," he said.

Sam placed her hands on her hips. "So then, what was it meant for?" she wondered with a soft frown.

They fell silent for a few seconds before Danny raised his head at a soft sound: "Pssst!" someone whispered.

Danny opened his mouth and his breath came out visible. He turned around and looked at a building. "Who's there?" he said, causing Sam and Tucker to pull out their weapons. When no one replied, Danny frowned and held his Thermos at the ready. "Who's spying on us?" he asked louder.

There was silence again, and then an arm came out from behind a building. It beckoned Danny over.

Danny stared at it in silence before putting his hand down. He, Sam and Tucker slowly walked towards it.

Danny paused a moment before cautiously peering around the corner. "Hello?" he said.

To his surprise, there stood five old yet familiar faces: a young woman with blond hair and green skin, dressed in a blue gown; a boy wearing early fifties clothing, completely in shades of grey, with a thick pair of glasses on his nose; a blue woman dressed in rock star clothes, with a flaming ponytail and a guitar slung over her shoulder, and a young man and woman, dressed in punk style, sitting on a glowing motorcycle.

Danny stared at them in bewilderment. All the ghosts did was smile and wave back.

"Oh, my gosh," Tucker chuckled softly while grinning. "I don't _believe_ it, man! It's Dragon Princess, Poindexter, Ember, Johnny 13 and Kitty! All _inside_ the ghost shield!"

"How did you guys get past it?" Sam wondered suspiciously.

"We didn't," Ember replied, pointing over her shoulder. "Danny's Old Man left the portal open yesterday while putting repairs to it before leaving for the fair. So we decided to hop through to the other side when the Ghost Keeper decided to show his face."

"Quite a risky move on our part, but we had to get away from that bully somehow," Poindexter added while pushing up his glasses.

Danny continued to stare at them in silence before blinking and opening his mouth. "What are you doing here?" he asked.

Johnny reached over and placed a finger over Danny's chest. "To see you, Little Brat," he said with a clever grin.

"When we heard that you had paid Skulker a visit, no one believed that you were actually still alive," Kitty added with a grin of her own. "Do you know how much we ripped this place up just to end up finding out that you weren't even _here?" _

"Your buddies, there, did pretty good at covering your tracks," Ember added. She smiled. "We actually thought you were dead, Danny Phantom."

"When word got around in the ghost zone that you had returned," the Dragon Princess added, "We decided to pay you a visit."

Danny frowned back and got into ready stance. "Well, if you're here to fight, I don't have time," he said. "I've already got a price on my head, so I don't need one on my chest, either."

"Hold the phone, Kid," Johnny announced, holding up his hands. "We just came to give you some help."

Danny's frown disappeared as he stared at him in confusion. "Some help?" he echoed. "But I thought you guys hated me."

Ember raised an eyebrow. "Sure, we can't stand your guts," she said. "After all that time of stuffin' us into your thermos, and ruining our plans, you gave yourself a pretty bad reputation on most ghosts." She smiled again. "But that doesn't mean we hate you."

"Every ghost holds a grudge against each other, Fenton," Poindexter said with a grin of his own. "Our job is to haunt each other's worlds, each other's people. We fight for a living. You are no exception to the rule, even though you're only half ghost."

"To be honest, Danny, it's been pretty _boring_ without you around to bust us," Kitty added. "We tried like, forever to find you, but after a few years, we just gave up and figured another ghost had gotten to you first." She smiled and pointed at him. "The last time we saw you, you were only a kid," she said. "You wouldn't mind… showing us how much you humans actually change, huh?"

Danny looked at her for a moment before closing his eyes and transforming into his ghost form. When he reopened his eyes, he had become the ghost who hunted the five standing before him.

But neither horror nor hate filled their eyes upon seeing the man in his suit. Instead, the ghosts stared at him with wonder and pride.

"Whoa, major upgrade," Johnny said with a chuckle. "Still a bit on the scrawny side, but hey."

"Fascinating," Poindexter said. He looked at Danny and smiled brightly. "You certainly are a most amazing Halfa, Fenton. I must admit; you have become quite the adult Human."

Danny smiled timidly back.

Ember winked. "Rockin'," she said. "It almost makes me feel good about being hunted by a guy like you."

"Very handsome," Dragon Princess replied with a warm smile of her own. "You certainly have changed, Daniel."

Danny nodded politely. "Thank you," he said.

They remained silent until Sam cleared her throat and caught their attention. She frowned and tapped her foot. "Okay, not that this isn't all cute and everything," she said, "But we've got a Ghost Keeper to stop. If you guys came to give Danny some pointers, you'd better do it now."

"Yeesh, _she_ certainly hasn't changed much," Kitty said in disgust, making Ember giggle.

Danny clasped his hands together. "But she does have a point," he said. "You guys took a big risk coming to see me when the Ghost Keeper wants me dead."

"Duh," Ember replied. "I mean, he _eats_ ghosts, dude."

Poindexter pointed at Danny. "We have a piece of information you may need on your mission, Fenton," he said seriously. "One that has to do with your gift of Ultimate Control."

The Dragon Princess took a step forward and placed her hand over Danny's chest. She closed her eyes and her hand began to glow.

Danny gasped and opened his eyes wide. They glowed a pale yellow for a moment before fading back to green.

The Princess let his chest go and looked up at him. "It is very strong within him," she said. "Your Ultimate Control is the most powerful I have ever sensed, Danny."

Tucker pointed at her. "You can _sense_ the power in him?" he said in awe.

The Princess nodded. "Yes," she replied. "And the gift within Danny is the most powerful I have ever sensed. If you succeed at unlocking its potential, Danny, you will hold a _great_ advantage over the Ghost Keeper."

"The reason he wants your soul, Danny, is because he _knows_ you have the strongest UCG a ghost can have," Johnny added. "And once he eats you up, he'll be the strongest ghost of us all."

"The only reason he's truly eaten all of the ghosts that he did was because he wanted to find one with an ultimate control gift that has been unlocked to its fullest extent," Poindexter explained. "But so far, none of the ghosts he ate had such power."

"And then you were born," Ember said. "When you were given the powers you have now, Danny, you had the strength to unlock that ultimate gift all the way. That's why the Ghost Keeper wants you."

Danny listened to them carefully before staring down at his chest and placing a hand over it. "But then, if I unlock it all the way," he began, staring at the ghosts once more, "Will it be enough to destroy the Ghost Keeper?"

Poindexter pointed at him. "That is up to the amount of energy you use," he said. "Use it wisely, and it will be enough. Use it poorly, and kiss your life, as well as your town and its people, goodbye."

"Unlocking the Ultimate Gift is a pretty risky move," Johnny said. "Not many ghosts were able to do it, and sometimes they were destroyed by it. We've only got the energy we have as ghosts; but you have the energy of a ghost as well as the energy of a human. You might just have what it takes to take this guy down."

Danny, Sam and Tucker stared at him in silence until the sky above them groaned loudly. Everyone stared up at it at once.

"He knows you're outside, now," Dragon Princess announced. She looked at Danny. "We must leave you, Daniel; it isn't safe for ghosts to be near the Ghost Keeper when he is famished."

"Make sure you get that guy good, Danny," Ember said with a sly grin. "Because when you're finished, I wanna have first dibs on fighting you. I learned some new moves that you might wanna see."

"Granted that you _do_ survive," Poindexter noted.

Danny smiled cleverly at him and crossed his arms. "Come on, Poindexter," he said. "Do you honestly think I won't survive?"

Poindexter smiled cleverly in return. "Prove me wrong, and I will be willing to call a truce with you," he said. "Be the victor, and I will be one ghost less for you to worry about." He pointed at the others. "Though I'm not all that certain about these guys."

"I can handle them."

The ghosts smiled back before turning slightly invisible. "Good luck, Danny," Kitty said. "All the ghosts, as well as the humans, are counting on you to stop this guy once and for all."

"Unlock the ultimate gift, and maybe we'll be brave enough to take you on again," Johnny added, holding up his fist.

Danny held up his. "Count on it," he said.

Johnny saluted him, just before the ghosts faded away from view completely.

Sam and Tucker waited until Danny had transformed back to normal before speaking. "So, even though you win this guy, you'll still have to worry about those ones," Sam said tiredly.

Danny shrugged in reply. "I need practice," he said, staring up at the sky. He placed a hand over his chest and worry filled his eyes. "But what if I can't do this? What if I really am not strong enough to take on the Ghost Keeper? All the ghosts in the Ghost Zone are counting on me, and soon every human in Amity Park will be doing the same." Danny hugged himself and leaned against the building wall. "I'm not sure I can work under all of that pressure yet, Guys," he said fearfully. "This Ghost Keeper is beginning to scare me."

Tucker placed a hand on his shoulder before frowning up at the sky. "We're out here now, so you have to stop doubting yourself, Danny," he said. "We know you can do it, and somewhere inside of you, I know you know the same thing." He smiled and held up his gun. "So let's go Ghost hunting, just like old days."

Danny stared at him before looking at Sam. Sam smiled back and nodded bravely.

That was all it took to rebuild his courage and confidence again. Danny stood up tall and smiled boldly. "Ghost Keeper or no Ghost Keeper," he said; "I'm gonna be the hero I was before. And there's nothing anyone can say about it."

"Now _that's_ the Danny we know," Sam said proudly as they ran around the corner and dashed off.


	14. Chapter 14

They walked about the town, gathering any information they could about their surroundings. So far, nothing had dramatically changed within the ghost shield, including the people. More and more, they came out to look at their surroundings.

The one thing that _did_ change, though, was the power. Throughout the entire city, power was going down. The street lights stopped working, and slowly, so was everything else.

"This is _not_ good, guys," Tucker noted as he checked his pager. He looked up at Danny worriedly. "The power's going down all over Amity Park. Data's telling me that a source outside the Ghost shield is causing it. I'm guessing that it's the Ghost Keeper, and if we don't figure out how to stop him, the power failure will eventually reach Fenton Works and destroy the ghost shield." He tucked the pager away. "What should we do, Danny?"

Danny rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "On any normal occasion, I'd say that Technus was behind it," he began. "But he's probably off hiding somewhere, just like all the other smart ghosts in the Ghost Zone."

"Technus was considered a _smart_ ghost?" Sam snickered.

"You know what mean, Sam." Danny looked at Tucker. "The only logical thing for us to do for now is keep searching for any clues on how to defeat this guy," he said. "Or at least, weaken him."

"Not gonna be easy, considering we're in_side_ the ghost shield, and he's _outside,_" Sam pointed out sarcastically.

"But you heard what the ghosts said; even that shield won't hold the Ghost Keeper back. He could be on the inside right now."

"But he also said he would fight you on the third day, Danny. Considering he was one of the king's most valued warriors back in the day, I don't think he would take back that kind of promise."

Danny frowned softly in return. "Fine, so he only double-crosses to a certain degree," he said, turning around. "We should still take safety measures-!"

Just as he was about to walk off, a fist came flying into his face. Danny groaned painfully and stumbled backwards until he had fallen to the ground between Tucker and Sam. These two stared at him in surprise before looking up at his attacker.

Dash, along with a few other familiar faces from high school, was standing before them. He rubbed his fist while frowning at Danny.

"What the heck was that for, Dash?" Sam wondered as she and Tucker frowned.

Dash looked at them. "For everything," he replied. He reached down and grabbed Danny by the shirt collar, raising him off of the ground. "For ruining another summer."

"What ever happened to having a change of heart?" Danny wondered while frowning.

Dash narrowed his eyes. "Still have one," he replied. "The only problem is that Amity Park is in the _ghost zone_ now, and there's only _one_ guy I know who could have been responsible for that."

A young woman with dark brown hair walked up to Dash and frowned at Danny. "Even though we've still been attacked since you left, our town never went back into the Ghost Zone again since we graduated," she said.

Danny stared at her in surprise. "Paulina?" he wondered. He closed his eyes and sighed tiredly. "Why do I suddenly wish I had never had a crush on you?"

Dash tossed him to the ground again. "You got us into this mess, Fenton," he said. "Now get us out."

"What does it _look_ like I'm trying to do?" Danny snapped back as he rose to his feet.

"You're on the inside of the shield; if you want to get us out and regain your reputation in this town, then get the heck on the outside and fight whoever's doing this!"

"Have you gotten _stupider_ since high school?" Danny said dryly. "If I go out there without fully understanding what I'm getting myself into, everyone will die!"

Dash glared back and swung another fist at Danny. Danny yelped painfully and rubbed his shoulder where it had made contact.

"If you don't do some ghost fighting _now,_ everyone else will be the least of your problems, Danny _Phantom," _Dash hissed. "Unlike you, I've got a wife and two kids. My kids are waiting at home, totally freaked out, and my wife is probably trying to contact us as we speak. Some people in this town grew up and actually did something useful, so unless you want to be the cause of everything gone wrong, go ghost and go _fight!" _

He swung another fist at Danny, this time punching the shoulder where Danny had been cut by the ghost arrow. Danny gasped painfully before Dash punched him again in the face. This time, it sent Danny back to the ground, where Dash gave him a swift kick in the side. Danny groaned painfully and hugged himself.

Tucker moved between him and Dash, glaring at the blond haired man, before Dash could do anything more. "I don't think you understand the situation, Dash," he said with a frown. "Danny may have left us for four years and came back in time for another attack, but it isn't his fault. And unlike you, he's actually gone to university and studied to _be_ someone."

"An astronaut's not going to fix this ghost problem of ours, Tucker," Dash replied. "All _they're_ good for is walking on the moon, miles from the surface of the Earth, where no one can see their _faces…"_

These words caught Danny's attention. He opened his eyes wide as he felt his emotions begin to bubble within him.

"Jazz told us you thought it was amazing that he got that far," Sam argued. "What made you change your mind?"

"The fact that Amity Park is in the _Ghost Zone,_ Sam!" Dash exclaimed, spreading his arms out. "Ever since Danny came back, everything's gone wrong! Sure, he made it all the way to NASA, but what good is that if our town is going down the _ecto-toilet?" _

"Danny's done a lot more than _you_ could ever do," Tucker scolded, pointing at menacing finger at the man.

Dash leaned towards him and showed his fist. "You want to join him on the ground, Foley?" he hissed. "Just like old times?"

Tucker narrowed his eyes. "I'm not scared of you anymore, Dash," he replied, crossing his arms. "I failed to stand up for myself and Danny back in high school, but I'm _not_ going to back away now, especially when _you_ don't know the full story. Danny's in a lot more trouble than any of us, and if he dies, so do we."

"Since when does _Danny_ become the missing link?" Dash growled. "The only time he was useful was if he was _fighting_ the ghosts, so why doesn't he just _do_ that and regain our trust?"

"Since when did he ever have _your_ trust?" Sam yelled furiously, pushing Dash back. "Danny's been the most caring guy since forever, and all _you've_ ever done was shove him in a locker!"

Dash bared his teeth and pushed both Sam and Tucker out of the way. "I'm tired of waiting," he said. "If no one's going to do what I say, then I'll just take care of the matter myself." He held up his fist over Danny while glaring at Tucker. "Starting with the one responsible for this mess!"

He swung his fist down with so much force over Danny's stomach, Danny screamed painfully and contorted in pain.

This was the signal. Everyone present immediately rushed over and tried to get a piece of him for themselves, even Paulina.

"No, Danny!" Tucker cried out as a man from his grad class held him and Sam back. "Don't hurt him!"

"You told everyone about his secret!" Sam yelled furiously, trying to break free. "Dash, you're a big fat MORON! LET HIM GO!"

"I only told the people who would help take care of this mess," Dash replied. He raised his fist and prepared to swing it into Danny's face again. "Consider yourselves lucky that you're not in his place!"

He sent his fist forward as fast as he could. Tucker and Sam cried out in dismay.

But to their surprise, as to everyone else's, Dash's fist never made its mark. Instead, a hand reached up and stopped it midway to Danny's face; a hand covered in a white glove.

Dash stared at it in shock and gasped softly, just before everyone else stopped as well.

Tucker and Sam stared in complete bewilderment.

A bright light flashed for a split second beneath all of the people, and slowly, every single one of them was gently pushed away and placed back where they had been standing earlier. Even the men holding Tucker and Sam found that they could not control their movement and walked back to where they had been formerly.

"What the?" Dash said in disbelief, watching everyone fall back with the same surprised looks on their faces. The blond haired man turned to look at whoever was holding his fists and gasped.

Danny rose to his feet, bringing Dash with him. He had transformed into ghost mode, but the one thing that surprised Dash the most was the fact that Danny's eyes were illuminated by a bright white light.

Sam covered her mouth in shock.

"Danny?" Tucker whispered.

Danny frowned at Dash as a mysterious breeze made his hair flutter gently. _"Step back,"_ he hissed coolly.

Dash suddenly found that he could not control his movement. He pulled his fist back in surprise and stepped away from Danny and his friends.

Danny pointed at him. _"You will all go back to your families,"_ he ordered. _"And you will not remember anything that just happened. Everything Dash just told you about Danny Phantom never occurred. You will not remember. You were all just curious about the town's situation, and you all hoped that your hero would eventually come to the rescue. You will not attack us again." _

Dash and the others seemed to be under some type of trance. Sam and Tucker stared at them in confusion before looking at their best friend again.

Danny did not look back at them. All he did was close his eyes, grimace weakly and place a hand to his face. With a weak moan, he fell to his knees and transformed back into a human.

Sam and Tucker ran over to him. They crouched down beside their best friend before looking up at Dash.

Dash blinked several times, just as the others did the same, and then rubbed his eyes. "What the heck just happened?" he wondered, as though he could not remember anything. He suddenly looked down at Danny and his friends, as though he had not noticed them there earlier. "What are you guys doing here? Is Danny alright?"

Sam and Tucker were slightly startled by the question, especially after the fact that the man had just beat Danny up. "… He'll be fine," Tucker replied slowly. "Just got dizzy."

Dash nodded uncertainly and then turned around. "You should get him indoors," he said as he and the others walked away. "Who knows what kind of freaks can be out here to get him, if you get my drift."

Sam and Tucker watched them leave before looking at each other. "What the heck just happened?" Sam wondered.

"I'm not sure," Tucker replied as he placed his hands around Danny. "It's almost as though they were hypnotized into forgetting what just happened and what Dash told them about Danny's secret identity." He raised his eyebrows in bewilderment. "But no one could do that unless…"

Danny moaned weakly and finally opened his eyes. "Wh-what… did I just do?" he asked.

"You feeling okay, Bro?" Tucker asked worriedly as they raised him onto his feet.

Danny winced painfully while Tucker took Danny's left arm and placed it around his shoulders. "I feel like I've been used as a punching bag again," Danny replied painfully.

"How did you do that, Danny?" Sam wondered.

Danny looked at her. "How did I do what, survive that beating?" he guessed.

"No; how were you able to tell them what to do and what to think?"

Danny stared at her with a blank expression on his face until he raised his eyebrows in shock. "You don't… You don't think I just used my Ultimate Control gift, do you?" he said.

Tucker looked at him. "Dude, your eyes were glowing _white,"_ he said. "And when you told them to back off, they just _did." _

Danny moaned loudly in despair. "I just _used_ my power and I don't know how I _did?"_ he exclaimed. "This is _so_ unfair!"

Sam and Tucker braced themselves as Danny dropped in weakness and helped him regain his balance. "Okay, Ghost Boy, calm down," Sam warned.

"The Dragon Princess must have been right," Tucker noted. "If Danny's really got the most powerful UCG in a ghost ever, then it must be incredibly hard to control. No wonder he can't call it up. It's like a lot of his other powers; he could only do them when he saw someone else do it first."

Danny groaned weakly and placed a hand on his forehead. "Can we sit down for a minute?" he asked sickly. "I think Dash just made my breakfast want to escape."

"Oh, gross," Sam said in disgust as she and Tucker turned and walked towards the park. "Let's go set him down before he makes a mess."

"You're dating him, you're in charge of him," Tucker muttered.


	15. Chapter 15

Sam and Tucker left Danny alone to rest in the park while they did a bit more research in the area. They made sure he was fast asleep before deciding to get up and leave him for a moment or two.

Unfortunately, Danny's dreams were not as gentle on him. No sooner had he been left alone, was his conscience immediately attacked by one nightmare after another.

* * *

Danny found himself walking around a ghost town, one which resembled Amity Park too well. The buildings had been destroyed, the streets were deserted; it looked like a pile of ruins with a dried up lake and no plants.

The worst part was that it was floating in the Ghost Zone.

"Where am I?" Danny wondered worriedly, looking about. "Why is Amity Park gone? Where did everyone go?"

"They're all gone, Daniel," said a chilling voice causing him to freeze. "They've all perished; all because of you."

Danny swooped around, clenching his teeth and fists. Hovering a few feet above the ground was the same ghost he was trying to defeat:

The Ghost Keeper.

"What are you doing here?" Danny asked coolly.

The Ghost Keeper smiled in reply. "Reminding you of what happens when you use your powers to the full extent, Boy," he said. He spread out his arms. "Isn't it amazing what you can achieve when you put your emotions and powers to use at the same time?"

"What are you talking about?" Danny growled, crouching low. "I didn't do any of this. You probably did."

The ghost laughed. "If only, Daniel, if only," he replied. "But alas, I don't _have_ the Ultimate Control; _you_ do."

Danny stared at him in confusion.

"You still don't get it, do you? All of this, Danny… was _your_ doing. _You_ are the one who created this ghost town."

Concern and fear filled his heart. Danny shook his head. "I-I don't understand," he replied shakily.

"Of course you don't," the Ghost Keeper said. "So let me remind you: you tried to stop me with your power, but without full control over it, you managed to not only knock out the ghost shield, but you also destroyed everything you've ever come to know. Your power took control of you. It was you who destroyed your home. Not I. I would have, but you got to it first, unfortunately."

Danny did not believe a thing he was hearing. He shook his head again. "No," he said as tears filled his eyes.

The Ghost Keeper chuckled deeply. "Oh, yes, Daniel," he said. "Your power was so great, it destroyed the people you loved most. You truly _are_ the most powerful ghost in the world."

Danny shook his head violently. "No, that's not true!" he yelled.

"You have no right to hold that much power; you'd only make things worse, Boy. That's why you should have simply surrendered yourself to me. Now, everything you knew, including those two friends of yours, are gone. Forever. Thanks to Danny Phantom."

Danny grasped his head in his hands and yelled at the top of his lungs as his emotions burst again. He glared furiously at the Ghost Keeper and held up his hands as they began to glow. "You're lying!" he hollered as tears slid down his cheeks.

"Say what you wish, Daniel, but rest assured that you _were_ the one responsible," the Ghost Keeper replied. "If you use your Ultimate Control, you will _lose_ control, and become the very ghost you've been trying to destroy."

Danny cried out in agony and shot one ghost ray at a time at the Ghost Keeper. "Liar!" he yelled, although his shots only went through his enemy. "Liar, liar, LIIIIAAAAARRRR!"

* * *

"Danny! Danny, wake up, man! WAKE UP!"

Danny tried pushing away whoever was grabbing his shoulders. He shook his head madly and kicked his feet. "Liar! Liar! LIIAAAR!" he cried out.

"Danny, snap out of it! We've got to get back to your house!"

"Danny, come on! WAKE UP!"

Danny fought a little longer until he realized that those two voices were familiar. He gasped and opened his eyes as quickly as he could.

Sam and Tucker were leaning over him, shaking his shoulders to wake him up. They stared worriedly at him.

"Sam? Tucker?" Danny said. Before they could answer, though, he threw his arms around Tucker and hugged him tightly, taking the man completely by surprise.

"Whoa! What the heck's fried your brain _this_ time, pal?" Tucker exclaimed in shock.

Sam reached over and placed a hand on Danny's forehead. "Gosh, Danny, you're burning up," she said worriedly. "We _really_ need to get back to your house."

"The Ghost Keeper showed his face while you were sleeping, and freaked everyone out," Tucker added, still trying to break free from Danny's grasp.

"We need to get back to Fenton Works and start jotting down a plan."

Danny looked at Sam before finally letting Tucker go. He sat back against the tree he had fallen asleep by, and fearfully stared at the ground. He hugged his legs. "I-I can't fight him, guys," he admitted.

Sam and Tucker exchanged stunned looks before looking at Danny again. "What?" they exclaimed.

"I can't fight the Ghost Keeper," Danny repeated. He buried his face between his legs. "If I use my ultimate Control Gift, everyone dies. I may have the strongest gift, but I'm not strong enough to control it. Everything and everyone will die." He shook his head. "I just can't fight him," he said fearfully.

"Danny, what are you _talking_ about?" Sam asked worriedly. "You _are_ strong enough to control something like that. We've seen you do it!"

"What about earlier today with Dash, huh?" Danny exclaimed, looking at his girlfriend and frowning angrily. "Huh; what about that? I didn't even know what I was _doing_, Sam! How can you say that I'll be able to control everything if I wasn't even controlling myself _then?" _

Tucker grabbed Danny's shoulders and shook them violently. "Shut _up_, will you?" he yelled behind his teeth, startling Danny in the progress. "You're _totally_ freaking out right now, Danny Fenton! Snap out of it!"

Danny stared at him in shock before Tucker let him go. The black man sighed, passed a hand over his face and pulled off his beret. "Maybe you're right," Tucker said gently, looking at Danny. "Maybe you _didn't_ control it there." He frowned softly and pointed at Danny. "But it doesn't mean that you can't _learn_ how to control it. The only reason you did what you did earlier today wasn't even an evil reason, Danny…" His frown disappeared as he smiled pitifully. "You did that because you didn't want us or yourself to get hurt. Your emotions fuelled it, yes, but it was the _positive_ emotions that did. Not the negative ones." He placed a hand on Danny's shoulders. "You'll learn to control it, Danny; you just need more practice."

"But what if I really _do_ destroy everything?" Danny asked fearfully. "What if my dream was right? The Ghost Keeper told me that because I tried to use my power, I destroyed everything in Amity Park. What if that happens?"

"It's like you say, Danny," Sam replied with a shrug and a grin. "You don't know what you can do 'til you try."

Danny stared at her in silence before looking up at the sky as it groaned.

Tucker and Sam did the same and then looked at him again. "We need to get back to your place," Tucker announced, helping Danny to his feet. "Your mom said that she recorded a bad vibe coming from around the town, so unless you want to stick around and find out what it is, we should get going."

Danny rubbed his head for a moment before nodding weakly. "Okay," he said before following them off.


	16. Chapter 16

Jazz, Maddie and Jack waited impatiently for the three twenty-five-year-olds to return, and once they did, they took no time in asking questions. While Sam got Danny some water to drink and sat him down on the couch, Tucker began explaining about the message from the ghosts, and how Danny had subconsciously activated his Ultimate Control Gift for mere minutes.

Maddie then took it into her hands to make her son comfortable. While Jazz and Jack went to show Tucker and Sam what recordings they found, Maddie got a thermometer, a cold cloth and an advil for her feverish son.

"I know Sam mentioned that you were building on a fever, Danny, but why are you all of a sudden breaking into a _sweat_ too?" his mother wondered as she pulled the thermometer out of Danny's mouth. She read the readings and then set it aside. "You're burning up at an incredible speed, Sweetie."

Danny laid his head back against a pillow and closed his eyes. "If you want to know the truth, it started up right after I accidentally activated my gift," he replied. "I still don't know _how_ I did that, by the way."

"We'll figure it out eventually, Dear," Maddie replied, patting his hand.

"I wonder if this gift is like my Ghostly Ice," Danny wondered aloud. "You know how cold energy builds up in me? Maybe my UCG fills me up with hot energy."

"No matter what it is, Danny, your condition's got me stumped," Maddie said with a sigh. "And for one of the world's leading ghost specialists, that's not a good thing."

Danny grinned weakly yet did not open his eyes. "Must admit it, though, Mom; I had you stumped since I was fourteen. You guys never did figure out who I really was."

Maddie looked at him and smiled weakly. "Well, it would have helped plenty if you'd have told us the truth," she said. She looked at a nearby picture frame and grabbed it.

It was a family photo taken at the beach. Jazz and Danny had been around the ages of six and eight. Danny was sitting on his mother's lap, smiling brightly, and Jazz was sitting on her father's shoulders with her hair tied back in a ponytail.

Maddie sighed again and placed a fist against her cheek. "You were such an adorable little boy," she said softly, catching Danny's attention. "You laughed at every joke your father said, even if it wasn't funny, and you hated going to bed without a goodnight kiss."

"It helped keep the stupid ghosts out of my closet, that's why," Danny replied with a yawn. "You and Dad had this bad habit of giving me nightmares."

Maddie looked at him for a moment before staring at the photo again. "Strange," she said quietly. "Back then, I never imagined that my little boy would grow up… to be that very thing that scared him the most at night."

Danny opened an eye again and looked at his mother.

"You were so quiet, so shy," Maddie continued. "You got bullied at school but you never said a word to us. You hated the mention of ghosts but you loved how we worked on new inventions. We drove you mad but you couldn't stand being with any other grownup." Her eyes filled with fear and sadness. "Don't take this the wrong way, Danny, but… I liked it when you weren't half ghost… because you were safer that way." Tears filled her eyes as she raised the photo to her lips and kissed it over Danny's face. "I sometimes wish things could go back to the way they once were; when my little baby boy was too scared to go outside at night because of the ghosts."

Danny sat up and removed the cloth from his forehead. Pitying his mother, he reached over and placed a hand on her shoulder.

Maddie raised her eyes and looked at her son.

"Unfortunately, Mom, not even ghost hunters like you can keep things from changing," Danny said gently. "I chose to step into that portal. And because I did, I'm half ghost." He smiled timidly. "But, on the bright side, at least the stories you and Dad tell me aren't that freaky anymore."

His mother blinked a few times before grinning back and wiping her tears.

"It's kind of funny, though," Danny added. "How you're afraid that I'll get hurt, and I'm afraid _you'll_ get hurt." He smiled wryly. "Jazz always _did_ say that I got my worrying gene from your side of the family."

Maddie laughed softly before reaching over and holding Danny's chin in her hand. "Shy as you are, you're a knight in shining armour," she said softly. She kissed Danny's forehead. "If NASA ever decides to start those special missions you told Jazz about, I'm sure you'll make a fine captain."

"First, I need to make it back there alive," Danny replied. "But I'll worry about that after summer is finished." He placed his arms around his mother as she did the same. "Everything will be fine, Mom," he whispered. "You'll see; everything will be fine."

"I just hope you're right, Danny," Maddie whispered back, holding him as tightly as she could. "For your sake, I just hope you're right."


	17. Chapter 17

Sam and Tucker were asked personally by Danny to spend the night at the Fenton's home. Why, no one knew-they only suspected that Danny wanted to make sure they were safe, considering that tomorrow, the Ghost Keeper was expecting to fight him. But after a call to their parents, letting them know of their whereabouts, Danny's friends did indeed spend the night over at his place.

All three decided to pull an all-nighter, just as they had many times as teenagers. They were going to watch a few movies and make popcorn, helping to keep Danny's mind off of the events ahead.

But just past midnight, Danny soon discovered that he was the only one who had managed to stay up longer. Sam was the first to fall asleep beside Danny; one hour later, Tucker was out as well, sleeping on the couch with his head next to Danny's lap on a pillow.

Danny did not mind; it had been years since he last spent this much time with the two people who understood him the most. The least he could do was let them fall asleep against him.

Sleep never came to him. Again, like the night before, he was not only unable to fall asleep, but afraid to. Tomorrow was the day the Ghost Keeper said he would come for him. Did that mean that the ghost shield would fail? Would the town be overrun by ghosts? Would his family be in danger?

Danny stared around at the dark and empty living room. He wanted to do some more training, but he did not want to move, less he woke up his friends. So, allowing Sam and Tucker to continue their rest, Danny decided that the best place to practice… was there in the living room.

He tried calling upon his Power of Ultimate Control. He tried recalling exactly how he had felt as Dash and the others were beating on him and holding Sam and Tucker back. He remembered feeling his chest burn and his emotions bubble; he felt his anger grown inside of him.

Anger. _Hang on a second_, Danny thought. _Tucker said that my positive emotions had caused the gift to activate. I wanted to keep them and myself safe. But because my other powers can also be influenced by my emotions, it means anger can play a big part in it too. Maybe the reason I can never properly control my gift is because it only works up when I'm upset about something. _

He stared at a pillow that was lying on the floor. He frowned at it and closed his eyes. _Concentrate, Danny_, he thought. _You don't want to get angry at it; you just want it to move. _

He opened his eyes again. But the pillow had not budged.

Danny sighed. _I guess I'm supposed to give it a reason to move_, he thought. He closed his eyes and focused his energy on the item in question, but when he opened his eyes again, the pillow had once more remained immobile.

Danny moaned softly in frustration. "Can't you just move, you stupid pillow?" he asked aloud. He tried focusing once more, but again, it did nothing.

Danny bared his teeth as he felt frustration build up within him. "Just _move_," he growled behind his teeth.

There was a slight pause before suddenly the pillow began to glow dimly. Slowly and shakily, it rose into the air and began floating to another area in the room. Unbeknownst to the man, Danny's eyes had begun to glow white again.

Danny watched it go and began to grin until a wave of horrible weakness over swept him. His eyelids drooped and his head nodded while throbbing. Danny moaned sickly and raised a hand to his forehead.

The pillow immediately ceased to glow and fell limply to the floor.

Danny sighed in defeat and stared sadly at the pillow. "I'll never be able to master this by tomorrow," he said to himself.

There was movement to his right, but he paid no heed of it until a soft voice spoke up. "Danny, why are you still awake?"

Danny looked to his right, hardly moving his head. Sam slowly raised her head from the pillow she had placed next to Danny and looked up at him sleepily.

The twenty-five-year-old man sighed and stared at the pillow on the floor again. "Can't sleep," he replied.

But Sam had known him too long to know that her friend was not telling her the whole truth. She had noticed the sadness in his eyes. "Danny, stop worrying about it," she said. "You'll eventually know how to control it. Skulker _did_ say that it wouldn't be easy."

"But I need to know how to use this Ultimate Control before tomorrow," Danny replied heavily. He frowned furiously at the pillow and squeezed his fist. "But I can… hardly make it move… even an inch!"

The pillow began to glow again and started floating about once more. But again, Danny was too weak to properly grasp his gift and let the pillow drop.

He sighed in exhaustion before covering his face with a hand. "Plus, I can only make things move if I'm concentrating a lot and when I'm angry or frustrated," he added, pulling his hand away from his face and looking at Sam. "What good is anger when I'm trying to save people? That's my most unstable emotion, Sam; I can't _possibly_ save Amity Park if I'm fuelling my powers with my anger."

Sam stared at him in silence while Danny looked at the pillow again. Tears filled his eyes. "I went and studied to be an astronaut," he said quietly. "I was one of the few hundred people who were chosen by NASA to study there. I learned how to overcome my shyness to a certain degree and actually work with people. I learned how to take control of a situation, I learned how to fly a space shuttle, and I even learned how to fix one. For all I know, I could be chosen to be the head of a mission one day."

He wiped his tears away, but more came. "But, what good is that or anything else, if I can't control my emotions? All this time, I thought I was getting away from Amity Park to follow my dreams, when I was really just trying to escape my destiny and avoid putting anyone I care about in danger. And now, if only my anger can activate my UCG, we're all sure to die." He stared at his feet. "And it's all because I tried avoiding who I really am," he said quietly.

Sam reached up and placed a hand on his cheek. Slowly, she turned his head until Danny was staring at her.

"You really _have_ changed," she said with a small grin. "Back in high school, you didn't always do think before acting, and you didn't always put everyone first. You just wanted to get the job done." She pulled Danny's face a little closer to hers. "Maybe becoming an astronaut would be a good thing for you, Danny," she said softly. "You're not avoiding who you really are; you're just improving who you really are."

Danny blinked a few times but did not say a word.

"Maybe what you need to learn now, Danny, is listen to what you're heart is saying; not just your head and the logic that you learned. Once you've mastered that, love will fuel your powers and not hate. _You_ control your emotions; not the other way around."

"I almost _hardly_ understood anything you just said right there," Danny muttered foolishly as his cheeks turned red.

Sam raised an eyebrow and stared at him sarcastically. Danny waited a moment before grinning timidly at her. "But… I'm sure I'll eventually figure it out," he added.

This time, Sam grinned in reply. She reached over and kissed Danny's cheek before resting her head on his shoulder and pulling up the blanket she had gotten to sleep under.

Danny settled down a little and stared at the blank television across the room. "But I still don't know how I'll control this new power of mine without getting angry," he added heavily.

Sam, eyes closed, smiled and nestled a little closer to her best friend. "You'll eventually figure it out," she replied quietly.

Danny sighed and closed his eyes. "You know, for a goth, you sure are incredibly warm," he muttered.

Sam chuckled weakly before curling up. "You're nice and toasty yourself, ghost boy," she said as Danny placed an arm around her.

Danny grinned weakly until movement to his left caught both his and Sam's attention.

"You two _did_ know that I wasn't actually _sleeping_, right?" Tucker muttered beneath the covers.

Danny and Sam opened their eyes wide and blushed with embarrassment. Tucker giggled childishly beneath his blanket. "Awkward silence between love birds is _such_ an enriching experience," he said poetically.

"Can you hit him for me?" Sam growled behind her teeth, looking at Danny.

Danny smiled back at her and simply laid his head back and closed his eyes. "I'll do it tomorrow," he replied tiredly.


	18. Chapter 18

The next day arrived with more than just the purple sky outside the ghost shield. Like the day before, the power was still flickering on and off, yet did it more frequently, and even more people had decided to venture outdoors to see what was happening.

Jazz was the first to get up. She got dressed in her usual daily attire, even though she felt that this day would not be any normal day. She brushed her hair while humming, trying to forget what events may happen on that fateful day.

Once ready, she left her room and went downstairs while putting her headband into her hair. She was just about to turn to go into the kitchen when she noticed that her brother and his two best friends were sitting on the couch, sleeping soundly. Tucker and Sam were stretched out at both ends of the couch, while Danny was sitting in the center, half of his body already partway off of the couch. Tucker and Sam had their heads leaning against Danny's. Danny had his leaning over Sam's, while one of his arms was wrapped around the woman.

Jazz stared at them in silence for a moment while rubbing her eyes and then covered a giggle. She looked up the stairs, just in time to find her parents coming down.

"Mom! Dad! Come and see this!" she whispered eagerly, beckoning her parents down.

Jack and Maddie strolled down the stairs and only stopped once they were by their daughter. "What is it, Jazz?" Maddie wondered.

Jazz pointed at the couch.

Her parents followed her finger and noticed Danny and his friends for the first time. Jack covered his mouth with both hands, having difficulty holding in his laughter, while Maddie giggled softly. "Oh, how _sweet_," she said, clasping her hands together. "They haven't fallen asleep together like this in years, Jack."

"Jazz, go get the camera!" Jack insisted eagerly as his daughter dashed off. "We have to preserve this moment before Danny leaves at the end of the month!"

Jazz returned with the family camera and ran out in front of the couch. She held it up to her eye. "Okay, Danny, say cheese," she giggled, even though she knew Danny would not hear anything.

She pressed the capture button, and a bright flash went off. It was so bright, in fact, that it not only caused Danny, Sam and Tucker to stir, but it also caused Danny to wake up. The black-haired man opened his eyes sleepily until he noticed that his sister was standing in front of them with the camera in her hands.

Danny shot his eyes open and sat up straight, causing Tucker and Sam to yelp in surprise and raised their heads as well. When they saw the same thing, they cried in fright and wrapped their arms around Danny's body.

Jazz laughed again and took another picture of them. "Oh, this will look so good on the wall, Danny," she teased him after putting the camera down. "You three are _so_ cute together."

Danny growled angrily and glared at his sister. "JASMINE!" he yelled, causing Sam and Tucker to release their grasp on him.

Jazz and her parents giggled. "Loosen up, Danny, it's just a joke," Jazz replied with another giggle. "I won't put the pictures on the internet, I promise."

Danny squeezed his fists and shut his eyes tightly for a moment before reopening them. To everyone's surprise, they were glowing white.

Jazz gasped and her smile washed away. Maddie and Jack froze. Sam covered her mouth while Tucker quickly put his glasses on his nose.

Danny frowned at his sister and stood up. "_Drop it_," he ordered coolly.

Jazz stared at him in complete surprise when she realized that her movement had become limited. Without her doing, she dropped the camera onto the floor, along with the instant pictures that came out of it.

Danny raised a hand and pointed at a cabinet nearby. Immediately, the camera rose from the floor and floated to where Danny instructed it to go.

"What in the _blazes?_" Jack muttered in shock.

"It's his power," Tucker replied. "It's still uncontrollable. He can only activate it when he's angry."

The camera was still floating towards the cabinet when the lights in the house began to flicker madly. Maddie looked up and gasped softly when the chandelier rattled.

Suddenly, Danny closed his eyes and raised a hand to his forehead in weakness. He moaned and fell on all fours, just as the camera crashed onto the ground as well.

"Danny?" Sam said as she and Tucker got off of the couch and crawled over to their best friend.

Danny rubbed his forehead painfully before opening his eyes again. They had returned to normal once more.

Tucker placed his hands on Danny's shoulders. "You okay, dude?" he asked gently.

Danny looked at him before looking up at his sister, who was still standing before him, still in shock.

"… S-sorry," Danny managed to croak. "I couldn't… control myself."

Jazz nodded quickly. "N-no problem, Little Brother," she replied quietly.

The lights in the house flickered some more, and the building even began to rattle weakly. Danny moaned painfully as it did and placed a hand over his forehead.

"I think the Ghost Keeper wants you outside," Sam said quietly, looking about.

"Danny's not going out until we formulate a plan," Tucker replied. "It's too risky to go out yet."

"Either we fight now, Tucker, or else Amity Park goes down the drain."

Danny moaned again, wrapped his arms around his stomach and placed his head against the floor. "I don't care what we do, as long as I can get something to eat, first," he said weakly. "I'll need all the energy I can spare, and I just used a heck of a lot of it performing that stunt, especially without transforming."

The lights flickered again. Maddie looked up quickly before running to the kitchen. "Then let's do that now, kids," she said as her husband and daughter followed her. "Sam, Tucker, help Danny get back up and bring him to the kitchen. I'll try cooking up some eggs and bacon before the power is completely drained."

* * *

Tucker fiddled with his electronic devices while Jazz and Sam finished their breakfast. Danny, although he was hardly hungry for anything in particular, despite his need of it, ate the most food of them all, hoping it would help preserve some energy. Afterwards, he pushed his plate aside and fell asleep at the table, arms crossed and head face down on top of them.

"Danny's really pushing himself to get this gift right," Jazz said softly, cutting the last of her ham. "He's maybe pushing himself too much. He's got this tendency to carry the blame of everything on his shoulders and not say a word about it."

"You're not the only one to notice it, Jazz," Sam replied, eating her eggs. "Danny's convinced that he won't be able to activate his gift unless his anger fuels it."

"But that's not true; Danny uses his positive emotions to fuel his other powers."

Tucker continued to play with his things. "Yeah, but first, he learned how to control them through his anger," he pointed out. "Anger is an incredibly easy emotion to achieve, and what's worse, it's incredibly powerful. The only thing more powerful than anger is love, but even though it's stronger, it's not always easy to feel love or compassion while fighting for your life."

"No kidding," Sam agreed. She stared at Danny as he stirred for a moment and moved his head.

Jazz finished chewing the last of her meat and then gathered her things. "I'm going to go get some gear," she said, carrying her things over to the sink. "And I'll check on how the ecto-suits are getting along." With that, she left the room.

Tucker watched her leave before looking at Sam. He stared at her in silence; then, he looked at Danny and then continued his work. "You know, Sam, if you really want to tell him, you'd better tell him soon," he said.

Sam froze and looked at Tucker with an uncertain glance. "Tell him what?" she asked slowly.

Tucker rolled his eyes and frowned at her. "Do you honestly think that because I'm a geek, have never had a girlfriend, and that I'm sometimes incredibly thick-headed, I'm too stupid to see what's happening?" he wondered, slightly irritated. He continued to play with his things. "Sam, you love Danny; you guys nearly spent at least three hours together almost every day this summer."

Sam shrugged as her cheeks turned red. "W-we haven't seen each other in four years, Tucker," she said nervously.

Tucker raised an eyebrow. "And that's why Danny took you out to dinner a few days ago?" he guessed. "Just you? And him? _Alone?" _

"W-w-well, he was being a gentleman."

Her friend groaned tiredly. "Sam, for cryin' out loud; just admit that you're in love with him and it'll be a heckova lot easier!" he said, leaning over the table towards her. "You two have had a crush on each other since we were in high school. You guys have already _made out_ in high school, for Pete's sake. I'm the one who encouraged you two to actually spend that first night alone, remember? Do you think I just did that to go play video games alone?"

Sam looked down at her hands. "Well, I-!"

"You're hesitating, girl," Tucker pointed out. He leaned back against his chair and continued to play with his device. "Soon, summer's going to be through, and Danny will be back at NASA, learning how to fly spaceships. He's probably going to be chosen to go on an expedition to the moon or to the space station, and you know how long people stay up there, right? Days or weeks, Sam; sometimes even months."

Sam sighed and passed her hands through her hair. "As much as I hate to admit it, you're right," she said, leaning over the table. She looked at Danny again. "But what am I supposed to do? Blurt out my feelings to him before we run off to war? What kind of dorky thing is that?"

"It may sound dorky, especially if coming from a goth, but it's incredibly smart, Sam," Tucker replied. He looked up at his best friend. "Danny needs to learn how to fight using _love_ as a fuel for his powers. This is just the techno geek's advice, pal, but…" Tucker's eyes softened and filled with concern. "Don't you think that maybe what Danny needs… is a good _reason_ to fight for? Don't you think he needs to know what love actually _feels_ like?"

Sam stared at him in silence before looking at Danny once more. For the first time in a long time, Tucker said something that made her think. Ever since Danny had come home for summer, they had been spending time together every chance they had alone. Tucker even encouraged it to a certain degree. After a few nights of being alone together, Sam had found herself taking a huge step forward with Danny. Nearly an entire month had passed since that evening.

But suddenly, Sam realized that, even though they had shared those intimate moments together that summer, she had never actually admitted to Danny that she loved him. And, although they had kissed in high school, Danny had never done so to her again… nor had he admitted his true feelings to her either.

Sam traced a circle over the table, wondering what to say next, when the lights flickered again. The whole house made a giant tremble, causing her and Tucker to raise their heads. Even Danny had been awoken by the tremble, and looked up slowly.

"Is it just me, or are these tremors getting bigger?" Tucker wondered worriedly.

"It's not just you, trust me," Sam replied.

The house trembled again. And again.

"It sounds like something huge is walking towards us," Sam added.

Danny stared upwards silently until his breath came out incredibly thick, thicker than usual. He gasped and stood up, his eyes looking about frantically.

"Maybe it's not something huge, Sam," Tucker said, as he and Sam stood up as well. "Maybe it's just a bunch of ghosts… all walking at the same time."

The house trembled once more. They looked about in silence.

"It's the Ghost Keeper," Danny whispered, as his breath continued to exhale visibly. "All of the ghosts he's destroyed, moving all together as one." He shivered and hugged himself as his teeth chattered.

"How long is your breath going to do that, Danny?" Sam asked, slightly concerned.

Danny rubbed his arms before looking at her. "It's not going to stop until all of the spirits that create him have been sensed," he replied. He shivered again and his eyes glowed blue. "And th-there's a heck of a lot of… g-g-g-g-ghosts to sense," he added.

Tucker took the opportunity to put things into motion. He grabbed Sam by the shoulders, much to her surprise, and pushed her into Danny. Danny straightened out in bewilderment when Sam bumped into his chest. Both of them stared at Tucker with questionable looks.

Tucker winked with a grin. "Sam, keep him warm with your body heat, while I go get an electric blanket," he said, rushing off. "I've got a feeling that Danny will be pretty cold for a _looong_ time."

Sam and Danny watched him leave the kitchen before looking at each other. Danny cleared his throat nervously as his cheeks turned red. "Um, do you two know something that I don't?" he asked.

Sam looked away and secretly blushed with a grin before looking at Danny again. "Not really," she replied. She tied her hair back in a pony tail and grabbed Danny's shirt.

Danny spread out his arms more out of surprise than anything else, as Sam pulled the t-shirt over his body. "Wh-what are you doing, Sam?" he asked, slightly concerned as his shirt was pulled off of him.

Sam tossed the shirt onto the nearest chair. "I need to be in perfect contact with your body in order to properly transfer some heat," she responded. She placed a hand over Danny's chest and raised her eyebrows. "Holy cow, Danny; you're freezing like an _icecube_," she said in surprise, looking at him.

Danny opened his mouth to speak, but all that came out was his ghost sense.

Sam nodded solemnly. "There's definitely a lot of ghosts," she muttered as the house shook again and the lights flickered. She wrapped her arms around Danny's body, and then glued herself completely against him, including placing her cheek against his chest. With a soft sigh, she closed her eyes.

Danny held his breath-Sam knew this because she was unable to hear him breathe.

"I'm n-not sure if I should be touched or t-t-totally freaked out right now," Danny mumbled with a shiver.

Sam smiled weakly while she felt Danny's heart beat below her ear. "You're such a dipstick, Danny," she whispered.

For a moment, Danny did not make a single movement. All Sam could hear was his heart beating, and all she could remember at that moment was how she tried to have her heart beat synchronically with his.

Finally, Danny made a sound and exhaled slowly. Sam could feel his chest move up and down gently as he began to breathe again, and the next thing she sensed were Danny's arms as they slowly enveloped her.

Sam smiled a little more when Danny placed his cheek against her head. "I think it's working," he whispered softly. "Slowly, but it's working."

"Good."

Sam opened her eyes and stared at the doorway, just as Danny raised his head and looked in the same direction.

Tucker was standing in the doorway of the kitchen, holding a thick blanket in his arms. He smiled at his two best friends and walked towards them, holding up the blanket. "Then this should help speed it up, Danny-boy," he added.

Sam watched him as he threw the electric blanket over Danny's body. Danny sighed loudly and placed his head down on Sam's again while closing his eyes. "That _is_ helping," he whispered.

Tucker crossed his arms and leaned against the counter before looking at Sam.

Sam grinned back in reply, as if to thank him for the opportunity.

Tucker smiled back and winked.

"I don't know what you two are up to," Danny announced, catching their attention, "But whatever it is, please don't stop."

Sam took a deep breath and hugged Danny tighter before closing her eyes again. Tucker grinned weakly, still a little concerned about his best friend. "We won't, Danny," he said gently, as the lights flickered again.


	19. Chapter 19

It was several minutes before Danny, Tucker and Sam were finally able to come up and join the rest of the Fentons in the upstairs observatory. Once Danny had gotten over his freeze, Sam gave him back his shirt to put on. Danny asked to keep the blanket a little while longer, more or less because its warmth made him comfortable.

When they arrived upstairs, they soon realized what kind of changes Danny's parents had put to the suits.

"Whoa, _major_ upgrade since yesterday, dude," Tucker said with a soft laugh as he and the others walked in.

Jazz was wearing her suit, but instead of the giant bulky ones that Sam and Tucker had tried the day before, this one actually fit her as if it was a jumpsuit of some sort, made of a thin yet flexible and durable layer of metal.

"Wow, what did you guys do to the older ones, Dad?" Danny wondered, looking at his father.

Jack looked up from his work on his own suit and smiled proudly. "Your mother's idea, actually," he said. "She figured the other suits limited too much movement, which wouldn't be good if we were trying to run for our lives."

"So, we reprogrammed these new jumpsuit-like ecto-suits and made one for each of us," Maddie added, standing up while wearing her suit. She smiled and held up her arms. "Pretty sexy, huh Danny?"

Danny covered his eyes while Tucker covered his mouth. "Uh, _please_ don't ask me that question, Mom," he muttered, making Sam laugh.

Jazz did a cartwheel in her suit before standing up again. "But, these suits are liable to explode, just like the other ones," she said. "So if too much negative energy is absorbed into them, we may need to ditch the suits and vamoose. And considering that the Ghost Keeper knows how to use the Dark Arts, we may need to actually do that."

"Oh, _that's_ rich," Sam noted sarcastically while frowning. "So while we've got some kind of armour to protect us for a certain amount of energy, Danny's got nothing."

"Uh, Sam?" Danny interrupted flatly, catching her attention. "I _am_ part ghost. I have several defence mechanisms that _you_ don't. Armour for you, good; armour for me, same as going ghost."

Tucker giggled behind his hand while Sam blushed. Sam frowned at Tucker after a moment and punched him in the shoulder, making the black man yelp painfully and rub his shoulder.

Jack walked over to them and held up two suits, one for a man and one for a woman. "With that settled, this one is for Sam, and this one is for Tucker," he said, handing them their suits. "So put it on and watch the magic, Kids."

Tucker and Sam looked at each other before stepping into their suits and zipping it up. Once they had been zipped and sealed, the suits began to glow and were immediately wrapped by a layer of mechanical medal, just like Jazz, Maddie and Jack's suits.

"Whoa-ho-ho, man, do I look good in this or _what_?" Tucker laughed, holding up his arms and checking himself out.

"I have to admit, they are pretty neat," Sam added. "Actually making this battle worth fighting."

Danny placed the blanket down and clasped his hands together. "Then I guess it's time to take this show on the road," he said. "Once I transform, and the whole town sees me again, they'll be more than ready to fight whatever's coming."

"Good enough for me!" Jack exclaimed, holding up a fist. "So, let's go kick some ghostly butt!"

Suddenly, the house began to tremble violently. Everyone shouted in fright as they stumbled to keep their balance, and then just as Jazz fell into her mother's arms, the lights went out and sent the room into complete darkness.

"Oh, no!" Jazz cried out in terror. "The power's gone! That means that the ghost shield won't be working! What are we going to do?"

"Don't worry, Jazz," Jack replied. "The ghost shield is now running solely on the energy Danny gave it when this all began."

"Which means what?"

"That it'll stay up for another seven hours, give or take."

"It's eleven thirty," Tucker noted. "Which means that the shield will stay up until around six o'clock. Maybe six thirty if it isn't sent too many blows, but if it's attacked too much, it may be just until five o'clock."

"Great; so now we have _another_ deadline," Sam noted sarcastically. "And now, we can't even find the front _door_. Does anyone have a match or something? Who didn't think of raising the steel blinds over the windows in this place?"

Danny rubbed his hands together and smiled cleverly. "Don't worry, Sam," he said as his eyes glowed green. "I can lend a hand with our darkness problem." He got into ready stance. "And now that the power's out, that means the ecto-defense system won't work unless set manually. And _that_ means…"

The glowing halo of light appeared around his waist and split into two as it intersected his body. Once they disappeared, Danny's body was illuminated by the ghostly glow around him, making him visible to everyone in the room.

Danny smiled. "… That I'm free to go ghost in the observatory," he finished. Clapping his hands twice, they began to glow green, allowing everyone to see things to a certain distance. "Follow me," Danny instructed as he walked to the doorway and down the stairs.


	20. Chapter 20

The rest of the house was just as dark as the observatory was, even with the windows open. Danny led them down the stairs, considering the elevator shaft did not work because of the power outage, and into the living room.

Arriving there, he sighed and walked up to the front door. "Okay; now it's time to fight," he said boldly, while smacking his fist into the palm of his other hand. He frowned and looked at his parents. "So what's the plan?"

Maddie and Jack recoiled before looking at the others nervously. Danny caught the anxiety in their eyes and rolled his tiredly before slapping his forehead. "You guys don't _have_ one," he sighed again.

"We made the ecto-suits," Jack replied stubbornly, crossing his arms. "Normally isn't it _your_ job to come up with a plan?"

Danny looked at him through his fingers and then stared at Jazz. His sister shook her head and waved her hands before her. "Don't look at me; _I_ was busy gathering the gear," she replied.

Danny moaned in exasperation. "Hasn't _anyone_ thought of _anything?_" he exclaimed. "I can't go to the rescue or even save myself if I don't have a _plan!" _

Tucker pulled out a device from his suit's pocket and flipped it around his fingers. "Don't worry, Dan," he said with a sly grin. _"I've_ got a plan."

Danny and the others looked at him. Tucker held up his PDA. "I sort of figured that with everything happening to Danny these past few days, no one would have thought up a plan," he said. "So, whenever I got a moment alone, I was able to formulate one." He tossed the PDA to the ghost.

Danny caught the pager in his hands and stared at the information that appeared on it.

"I already know that the Ghost Keeper will be able to break through, the shield on his own," Tucker explained, pulling out another pager. "And he'll probably be able to conjure up a few tricks using his dark arts. So here's what I've been analyzing: the Ghost Keeper will be thinking that if he attacks the town, Danny Phantom will come to the rescue. He expects Danny to save the people of Amity Park."

"Uh, _yeah_, Tucker, we're expecting that too," Sam added sardonically. "What else do you expect him to do?"

Tucker frowned back at her. "See, _that's_ what your problem was, Sam," he said. "You never let me finish. So let me finish!" He cleared his throat and looked at Danny again. "The Ghost Keeper will _want_ Danny to rescue the people, and when he does, he'll send out so many attacks that Danny will eventually use up his energy. When he sees that Danny's low on fuel, that's when he'll decide to attack, and _that's_ when Danny will die."

Danny rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "That seems logical," he said, slightly concerned. He looked up at Tucker. "So, what should I do about that?"

Tucker smiled cleverly. "That's the best part," he said. "_You_ don't do anything, until I give the signal." He pressed a button on his pager and a map of the town appeared. Red dots began to blink around it. The same diagram appeared on Danny's. "Last night, while you were heating popcorn for our movie night, I went downstairs to the Ghost portal and called up a few of your friends. I had them install special devices around the city. These devices, Danny, are ghost zappers, special ones, in fact." Tucker smiled proudly. "Zappers that _I_ created."

Danny stared at him in surprise while his parents gasped. "You created a ghost weapon?" Jack exclaimed with a grin.

Tucker nodded. "When I was at Computer College, I learned a few things about technology that I didn't know about before," he said. "So I created these things. The Ghost Zappers are actually devices that, once activated on my command, will send out special frequencies that will destroy any type of ghost magic or weapon that attacks within the zone that the device protects."

Sam frowned and crossed her arms. "That would sound great, if not for the fact that Danny is _half ghost_, Numskull," she muttered impatiently.

Danny placed a hand over Sam's mouth and frowned at her. "You two just never stop biting each other's heads off, don't you?" he said, irritated. "Let Tucker finish, and _then_ you can have your say." He looked at Tucker. "Keep going."

Tucker smiled back. "Yes, these devices will destroy anything from the ghost world," he said. "But here's the beauty of it: I designed these ones to attack anything that _isn't Danny Phantom." _

At these words, everyone, even Sam, became intrigued. Danny raised his eyebrows and smiled cleverly. "I'm listening," he said, beginning to understand where Tucker's plan was going.

Tucker pressed another button on his PDA. "The zappers will work for only a limited time, so before that, Danny can help us destroy what comes our way," he explained. He typed in a command. "The zappers can work up to three hours, so I'll set them to activate at about two thirty. Before then, Danny, you can choose when or when not to help us attack. You'll need to save up your energy in case you'll be using your ultimate control."

Danny nodded firmly. "Got it," he said.

Tucker looked at the others. "Once the devices are activated, we'll just need to sit back," he went on. "Maybe some of the things will keep coming through, or at least part of them, because the Ghost Keeper can also perform Dark Arts, which is an earthly myth, but whatever he makes with that _will_ be weakened by the ghost zappers. When the zappers are on, that's when we try to lay low and get the other people some help…" He looked at Danny. "And during that time, Danny will be on the other side of his ghost shield, fighting the Ghost Keeper."

Danny smiled. "Not that bad of a plan, Tucker," he said proudly. "I'm glad you haven't changed all these years."

Tucker twisted his PDA around and tucked it away. "Thanks, Danny," he replied. "I knew it would eventually come in handy again."

Danny clasped his hands together and looked at everyone. "Okay; we've each got an ear piece to communicate, but mine will be useless once I pass the Ghost shield," he said. "Until then, keep them on. We'll probably need to split up for the first few hours of fighting, but if anyone needs an extra hand, just call for me and I'll come running…" Danny paused for a moment and smiled wryly. "Uh, make that flying," he corrected himself. "_Much_ faster than running."

Tucker raised a fist. "Okay, then! We each take our own neighbourhood, and once the zappers go on, we'll join back in the park," he instructed. He held out his hand before him. "For old time's sake," he said.

Sam placed her hand on his. "For our families and friends," she said.

Jazz placed her hand in next. "For our town," she added.

Maddie held out her hand. "For both Earth and the Ghost Zone," she said boldly.

Jack placed his hand on his wife's. "For the good of all Amity Park and her people," he said. "No matter how idiotic any of us really are."

Everyone looked at Danny and waited patiently.

Danny stared back at them in silence and looked down at his right hand. This was it; this was the moment that he would replace himself in Amity Park's history. This was when his destiny, his purpose, when his job of being a hero, would begin anew. When his life would again alter; _this was it. _

All he had to do was put in his hand and the battle would begin. It was his call. It was _Danny Phantom's_ call.

Danny stared at his hand for a minute longer before grinning weakly. All his ghost hunting memories finally returned to him, as though they had taken place just the day before. Humans were counting on him. _Ghosts_ were counting on him.

The man looked at the pile of hands before him and then placed his on the top. It glowed dimly. "For destiny," he said. "And for the responsibilities of heroes. May they never be forgotten, never left behind, and may they one day become part of the future we wish to build."

Everyone smiled proudly at him and beamed. Danny could just see the pride in their eyes as they stared at him, relieved to know that their hero had not given up.

Danny smiled back before they threw their hands into the air and shouted for joy.

Tucker passed a PDA to each of them. "These babies will let you know what time it is and where each of us are," he said. "If they get busted, then you guys aren't only lost, but you owe me two hundred and fifty dollars. Each."

"There's a heart breaker," Jazz muttered, making her mother laugh.

Danny ran to the door and opened it. "Then, on that note," he said, "It's time to hit the road, Ghost Hunters!"

Jazz was the first to run out, followed closely by Tucker. Maddie and Jack had already decided to be the last ones to leave, in order to put up the emergency defence system in the house.

Danny watched his sister and his best friend dash by him and run off down the street. He looked up in time to watch Sam run out the door.

But she stopped halfway down and looked up at Danny. After a moment, she walked back up the stairs and stopped next to him.

Danny stared back at her in silence and suddenly realized where they were all headed: they were off to battle, each in their own neighbourhood, with not much of a backup but Danny himself and a few courageous people of the town.

Suddenly, he felt stupid to be letting Sam go out alone.

Danny remained silent for a moment before taking a deep breath and exhaling. "Be careful, Sam," he said gently.

Sam took a breath herself and nodded weakly, almost as though she was thinking the same thing about Danny. "You too," she replied.

Danny fell silent again. Sam made to turn and run back down the stairs, but then she swooped around faster than what Danny could expect. To his complete surprise, Sam grabbed the front of his suit, hoisted herself up to him on the tips of her toes and pressed her lips tightly against his.

Danny's eyes went wide in astonishment and he immediately glued himself against the door. He squeezed his grasp around the doorknob while staring in complete bewilderment at his best friend.

Everything around him suddenly began to fade away as his heart beat louder and louder, faster and faster, pumping an almost forgotten feeling into his system. This feeling made his chest warm up. His green eyes glowed brightly. His body went from invisible to visible, intangible to solid. His head suddenly became light, as if all of his burdens had been mysteriously lifted from him.

Danny remained in a state of complete shock for a few seconds longer until finally, he was able to soak the moment in properly. His eyelids drooped until he could control them no longer and closed his eyes. He separated his sealed lips and pressed them against Sam's while placing his hands around her arms. Suddenly, everything felt right, as though it was all in its place, and he never wanted to leave that moment.

Maddie and Jack came around the corner after adjusting the security system and were about to make a break for the door when they stopped in their tracks and saw their son and Sam still standing in the doorway.

"Oh, Nellie," Jack muttered softly while grinning, as his wife looked on proudly. "And what a time to be doin' it."

Neither Danny nor Sam took any heed of Jack or Maddie, or anything else for that matter, until a shout from outside forced their lips to part.

"Hey, Samantha and Daniel!" Tucker shouted from the sidewalk. "You guys can make out later! We've got a town to save, remember?"

Sam immediately pulled her lips away from Danny's, but although they were no longer attached, Danny could still feel his world spinning out of control. He stared across the doorway as if nothing was there any longer.

Sam grinned timidly while blushing and immediately dashed off down the steps and the sidewalk, running after Tucker.

Danny did not budge. He had yet to pull himself out of the trance he had been placed in, and so far, he only got as far as an incredibly childish grin. He laid his head back against the door and sighed heavenly before going in tangible and slipping down through the floor.

Jack leaned over to his wife. "You think we should wait here until he snaps out of it?" he wondered.

Maddie smiled sweetly back. "Let him daydream, Dear," she replied. "Besides; if he doesn't snap himself out of it, the security system will."

Meanwhile, Tucker was still dashing down the sidewalk when he finally decided to turn his head and look at Sam. He smiled slyly. "So, how did _that_ feel?" he asked.

Sam stared back at him before flushing with embarrassment. "It… felt nice," she said with a shy grin.

Tucker giggled and turned his head away. "If it didn't work right away, I'm pretty sure Danny will be feeling some _love_ tonight!"


	21. Chapter 21

The Ghost Keeper watched as the people came out that day. He waited patiently for the power to give in, all the while keeping an eye out for any signs of Danny Phantom and his Phantom Crew.

He frowned softly. "Come, come now, Daniel," he said aloud. "Don't be shy. I told you that I would be here on the third day, so why have you not shown your face? Has Amity Park's hero finally lost all of his courage?"

The lights around the town suddenly went out, and people shouted in fright.

The Ghost Keeper smiled. "Ah, about time," he said. He held out his hand and stuck it through the shield. "Now it's time to begin the attack. We'll start with a fight for the citizens. Let's see how Danny Phantom handles _this." _

* * *

Tucker ran out into the park as people rushed passed him, screaming in fright. He looked at them all and then noticed that the Ghost Keeper had sent his hand through the shield. Pouring out from it was black smoke, and once that parted, hundreds of ghost figures and skeletons bearing deadly weapons came marching out towards them.

Tucker grinned and raised his wrist to his mouth. "I've got _mundo_ trouble on my side," he said. "How about you, Sam?"

_"If I told you that I had double your amount, would that mean that I'm winning another competition or that I'm in need of some assistance_?" Sam replied.

_"Where's Danny_?" Jazz's voice wondered.

_"He's hiding out until the right moment, Dear_," Maddie announced. _"He'd rather not say where in case the Ghost Keeper overhears it." _

Tucker pulled out a gun and pointed it at the ghosts that were walking towards him. "We'll worry about Danny later on," he said. "For now, it's time to kick some phantom butt!"

He fired ecto-plasmic ghost rays in their direction, knocking down several ghosts at once. He fired attacks from his suit while dodging attacks sent to him by the ghosts.

But to his dismay, for every ghost he managed to break, another one was created.

Tucker rolled over the ground after an explosion and got up into ready stance. "Are you guys killing any of them?" he asked.

_"I shoot one, and five more pop up_!" Jack exclaimed. _"It's like they reproduce!" _

_"Tucker, can't we activate your ghost zappers now?_" Sam asked frantically.

Tucker dodged another attack and ran towards the trees in the park. "It only runs for three hours, Sam," he said. "If we don't use them wisely, Danny will miss his chance at properly destroying the Ghost Keeper!"

_"If we don't use it now, he won't have any_ backup _until then!" _

Tucker turned around and shot at the ghosts that were pursuing him. "Man, I wish I could have told what kind of crazy minions this ghost could conjure up," he said. "But with Dark magic, he can do anything. Even recreate copies of-!"

"Tucker!"

Tucker halted in his steps and stared ahead. There, standing before him, was Danny, in human form.

Tucker lowered his gun. "Danny, you should be hiding," he said, hastily walking over to his best friend. "It's too dangerous for you to be out here just yet."

"I had to come and check on you," Danny replied.

"Out of ghost form?" Tucker said in confusion.

But just as he reached for Danny, Danny smiled deviously and grabbed Tucker's arm. Tucker gasped in shock and cried out in fright when Danny twisted his arm and tossed him to the ground.

Tucker groaned painfully and gasped in fright when Danny leaned down and held a ghost weapon at his head.

"You shouldn't be meddling with affairs that don't concern you, Tucker Foley," Danny said menacingly. "I asked for Daniel, not for any of you. And because of your meddling, you will pay dearly…" Danny's eyes glowed red. "With your _life." _

"Hey, Bonehead!"

Evil Danny raised an eyebrow and turned around, looking up at the tree tops.

Danny Phantom stood up there, holding back a large slingshot made of a vine and two large branches. The ghost with white hair smiled cleverly and bared his teeth. "You know what _you_ should learn?" he said. He let go of the sling shot, sending several ghost bombs with it. "Not to impersonate a hero!"

The ghost copy of Danny gasped and dropped his weapon before breaking into a run. But the bombs reached him before he could get too far and exploded. The ghost screeched menacingly, and when the dust settled, nothing remained.

Tucker sighed of relief and looked up at Danny. "Working on your aim, I see?" he said with a grin.

Danny saluted him. "Just a little," he replied. He crouched down in the tree and looked at Tucker seriously. "Are you gonna be okay?" he asked.

Tucker got to his feet. "I'll be fine," he replied. "You?"

Danny looked upwards for a moment. "For now, yeah," he replied. He looked at Tucker again. "I'll keep layin' low, like you said, but if you ever need any help, just buzz me on your suit. Mom installed an alarm that I can hear in my earpiece when someone's in trouble."

"Is that how you found me in the first place?"

"No…" Danny paused for a moment before worry settled in his eyes. "I just wanted to follow you first and watch your back. Considering all the work you've done for me so far…"

Tucker grinned in reply and held up his gun. "No worries, Pal," he said. "It's good to know that you're still my best bud."

Danny stood up. "Just be careful, okay?" he said. Before he left, he looked at Tucker once more and smiled timidly. "Oh; and thank you, Tucker," he added.

"For what?"

"For giving Sam that push we both needed." Danny winked in reply and crouched down in order to jump. "I know you were the one behind it. She would have never done that on her own." With that, he leaped out of the tree and disappeared into thin air.

Tucker blinked a few times before grinning and running off. "I knew I was a genius," he said to himself.


	22. Chapter 22

Danny watched from the tree tops and buildings for the next few hours, always invisible, as the battle raged on. Every now and then he'd swoop in and lend a hand if incredibly dire, but it still was not the right moment to fight and show himself to the people. At the moment, only a few brave ones had joined his family and friends in the fight, but most still remained in safety zones. Police lent a hand wherever they could.

But no matter how hard everyone fought, the ghosts continued to multiply at an incredible speed.

_He's good, I'll give him that much_, Danny thought as he frowned softly and watched the battle rage on. _Good_ and _skilled. I've already needed to save Tucker_ and _Sam from duplicates of myself. He knows exactly how to tap into everyone's weaknesses. _

He heard a scream from down below, belonging to a woman. Danny gasped softly and looked at the street below, immediately recognizing the woman in need.

Although his teenage spirit grew excited, Danny's older and mature self breathed a tired sigh. "Paulina," he muttered. Flexing his fingers, he dove off of the building. "I was hoping a better entrance, but this will have to do for now."

Paulina screamed in fright as she ran from a group of skeletons. They shot ghost rays and other blasts at her, hoping to bring her down.

"Leave me alone!" she cried out. "I'm too flawless and beautiful to be killed!"

Danny sighed again. "Yep, same old Paulina," he said, becoming visible. He pointed his finger at the ghosts and shot one ghost ray after another. "Get back, Rattlebrains!" he shouted out angrily.

Each ghost exploded into oblivion, shrieking in fright, but once the dust had parted, several more were in the place of their predecessors.

Paulina screamed in fright and continued to run. Danny pulled on his hair. "Come on, die already!" he exclaimed. He swooped around and flew up to Paulina, scooping her up in his arms as he rose back into the air.

Paulina looked at him and squealed happily, throwing her arms around his neck and nearly choking him. "Danny Phantom, I knew you'd save me!" she said joyfully. She kissed Danny's cheek. "It's good to have you back home, Danny Fenton!"

Danny compared this kiss with the kiss Sam gave him earlier and concluded that the latter was better. "Thank you, but don't expect more than that," he replied as he dove back down to the ground.

"But don't you still want to date me?" Paulina asked as he dropped her off.

Danny looked at her and scratched his head. "Are you still single?" he wondered.

She smiled innocently. "For _you_ I am," she replied.

Danny frowned in confusion until he noticed an engagement ring around her finger. He stared at her in disbelief and recoiled. "Tempting, but _no way_, Girl," he said nervously. "I don't want to be part of a love triangle."

Paulina stared at him in surprise and then crossed her arms. "Well, if you're not interested in me anymore, who do you like now?" she wondered. "Your goth friend, Samantha?"

Danny shot her an irritated glare and then rolled his eyes. "If I said yes, why would you care?" he asked with a sly grin.

Paulina widened her eyes in shock. "But, what if I still have a crush on Danny Phantom?" she wondered.

Danny winked back and waved. "You can crush on him all ya want, Paulina," he replied. "But he's a ghost." With a laugh, he turned and flew off. "And ghosts don't get married to humans!"

Paulina pondered on this for a moment as she watched him disappear from sight and then grinned while shrugging. "Oh well; I'll still crush on him," she decided before turning and running off.

Danny looked back at her before breathing a sigh of relief. "Good thing she's still as clueless as ever," he muttered to himself. "If she wasn't, I would have had to blackmail her to keep from revealing my secret."

He heard another shout for help, but this time, it did not come from anyone he knew. Gasping, Danny slowed to a stop and floated in midair while scanning the ground for the cry.

When he found it, he discovered a little boy, crying on the street. He had fallen as he ran to safety with his parents, and the ghosts were advancing upon him. The boy's parents were somewhere in the crowds nearby, unable to reach their son.

Danny stared in horror at the sight before slapping his forehead. "Hello? What am I doing just floating around?" He dove downward as fast as he could holding out his arms.

The boy screamed in fright as the ghosts marched towards him while holding out their weapons. People shouted in fear when the police's weapons were useless. They knew the entire town was surrounded, but no one had the heart to fight back. They were too afraid.

"I thought Tucker and Sam said that they had been able to cover for me these past few years?" Danny wondered. "Why are they all afraid of these guys if they always knew I was there?"

The answer suddenly came to him. Danny raised his eyebrows in revelation. _They knew they were protected_, he thought, _but they didn't know that it was me, because I never showed up. _That's _why they're scared! _

This made Danny's heart beat proudly, as he realized just how important he was to Amity Park. He frowned boldly and smiled as he dove down towards the street, becoming visible again. "HANG ON, KID!" he shouted out loudly.

Everyone looked up at him when they heard him shout. People gasped and pointed at him.

"Look!" a woman cried.

"Could it really be him?" a man wondered.

Danny landed on the street and ran to the boy. "Everyone cover your ears!" he warned.

The people didn't hesitate. They ducked down and blocked their ears.

Danny stood in front of the child, told him to do the same and glared at the oncoming ghosts. "Good thing I've got this power mastered," he said. He took a deep breath, filled his chest with as much air as he could, and then yelled at the top of his lungs.

A ghost-like wail emanated from his vocal chords, sending ultrasonic waves towards the enemy. Upon contact, it not only blew the ghosts back, but also caused them to explode.

Once the attack had been accomplished, Danny stopped yelling and turned around to pick the child up. "Let's go find your mom and dad," he said, jumping into the air and flying back to the crowds.

The people rejoiced and cheered as their hero landed among them and handed the child back to its parents. "Danny Phantom's back! He's come back to save us!" people praised happily.

Danny could not help but to grin, even though he had never enjoyed being the center of attention. People clapped for him and cheered for him, no longer caring if he was a ghost; all that mattered was that they had been rescued in the nick of time by their hero.

The cheers were cut off when a low groan came from the ghost shield. Danny gasped softly and looked up as a breeze began to blow. The shield was weakening; the shade of green was fading away, and out from the other side ran another large battalion of ghost skeletons.

The people began to panic again. Some grabbed hold of Danny's arms.

"Please, don't let them destroy our town!" someone begged.

"You have to save us, Danny Phantom!" another cried out. "Please help us!"

Danny looked at them all and realized just how frightened they were. He frowned boldly and gently brushed their hands away from his suit. "I won't fail you," he said as they all listened. "But now I must ask a favour from all of you. Though I don't deserve it, considering I've been absent for a long time, I need you all to understand one thing: Amity Park is not just _my_ responsibility; it's _yours_ too. You've all lived in this town your whole lives. You know its streets and its people more than anyone else. And right now, those people need you."

Danny pointed to the shield. "The ghost shield I put up three days ago is weakening," he said sternly. "On the other side is the Ghost Zone, and if the shield fails, you will _all_ die. I have friends that are battling the ghosts that are marching through right now, as we speak, but they can't hold them off on their own. The Fentons are not strong enough alone. They need all of us. All of you."

Danny flew up into the air and held up his fists. "Or, you can all stay and watch in horror as they claim your town!" he yelled out boldly. "But I for one, will not let Amity Park fall to the hands of another evil ghost! I will do what I've done for years now, and that's defend this town! So I will go out there and show them what kind of strength I've got, but if this whole town pulls together, thinks of how much stronger we can all be!" He held up his hand. "Now, who's _with_ me?" he hollered loudly.

The crowds immediately burst into a series of loud cries as they threw out their hands in agreement.

Danny grinned. _Heh; when I was a kid, that speech would have just made them all laugh_, he thought. He held out his hands as they began to glow green. "So let's go save OUR TOWN!" he shouted.

As he turned and blasted off towards the battle, the people on the ground shouted victoriously, grabbed whatever they could and ran after him, facing the enemy head on.

* * *

Sam tossed a skeleton aside and was about to shoot a ghost ray at another when she heard the shouts of the people around the entire town. She paused and looked about, just in time to see dozens of people run passed her to help in defeating the army.

"What?" she said in surprise.

_"Sam, are you seeing this?_" Jazz exclaimed happily. _"The people of Amity Park are actually fighting back! They're FIGHTING BACK!" _

_"Heck, they are_!" Tucker replied. _"Danny just gave them the peptalk of the century, dude! They've all rallied together to help us fight the ghosts back!"_

Just as he finished, Sam looked up to the sky in time to see Danny fly by while shooting a few ghost rays at some enemies. Passing overhead, a rush of wind following him, Sam could hear the man shout out with joy, despite the situation they were all in.

"WOOOOHOOOOO!" Danny's voice echoed loudly over the entire city.

Sam pushed back a few strands of hair and smiled up at him as the ghost did a twist before disappearing into thin air. "Good job, Danny," she said softly before turning and fighting the armies again.


	23. Chapter 23

The Ghost Keeper looked on in complete disbelief as the people rallied together and fought back. "That's not possible," he said. "How is it that these pathetic _humans_ are so courageous? It's not possible for them to fight against such odds. Why do they fight so?"

A flash of green light in an area of the town caught his attention, followed by a bright explosion. The Ghost Keeper looked on in shock until he understood who was behind the uprise. He growled low and bared his teeth as his eyes flashed with fury. _"Danny Phantom_," he hissed dryly.

* * *

Tucker shot down several ghosts, and the people around him fought just as bravely, even though most of their weapons did nothing to help. They had seen their hero fight, and now they were ready to do the same.

_"Tucker, they're still multiplying faster than what we can destroy_!" Maddie's voice announced over the radio. _"I'm having a considerate amount of difficulty holding them back! How much longer before the zappers are active?" _

Tucker blasted another ghost before answering. "About twenty minutes, Mrs. Fenton," he said. "Where's Danny?"

_"He's gone back into hiding for the moment_," Jazz replied. _"He told me that he needed to conserve some energy after that Ghostly Wail of his, so he's gonna lay low for a few more minutes-!"_

There was a sudden explosion over the radio, causing Tucker to come to a halt. "Jazz?" he called out. Fear struck him. "JAZZ! Jazz, do you read me?"

There was fuzz for a moment before someone finally answered. _"Don't worry, Tucker, Jasmine is fine_," Maddie replied. _"A ghost got to her suit's weakness and she had to evacuate it pronto. I'm sending her your way now so that you guys can fight together." _

Tucker sighed of relief before turning and continuing to fight. "One suit down," he muttered. "I wonder how long it is before the rest of the ghosts figure out our weak spots-!"

As if to answer his question, a ghost leaped onto him and pinned him to the ground. Tucker gasped in surprise and tried to wiggle free. "Obviously, not very long," he said nervously.

The ghost glared angrily and held up a spear to his face. It glowed red. Tucker stared at it in horror as the ghost directed it to the power source of his suit.

He gasped and tried breaking free again. "Don't do that while I'm still in the suit!" he shouted as the heat from the spear began to melt the suit. "DANNY! HEEELLLP!"

But instead of Danny, a blue ectoplasmic ray shot out across the park and exploded against the ghost. It shrieked and blew up into oblivion.

Tucker covered his face from view until he heard rushing footsteps headed his way. He dared to uncover his eyes and was relieved with who he saw.

Sam leaned over him and held out her hand. "You okay, Tucker?" she asked worriedly.

Tucker grabbed her hand and hoisted himself to his feet. "Better, I'm alive," he replied. "Thanks, Sam."

Sam grinned back. "No problem-!"

Suddenly, two purple ghost rays exploded against their chests, causing both Sam and Tucker to fall backwards to the ground with shouts of surprise. When they raised their heads, they noticed a group of ghosts headed their way, holding up deadly weapons.

"Or not!" Sam corrected herself as they got to their feet. "These guys are becoming too powerful, Tucker; it seems that the more we attack, the stronger they become! What should we do?"

Tucker looked at her until a faint beeping inside his suit caused him to gasp and look down. Sam's suit began doing the same.

"The suits are malfunctioning!" Tucker exclaimed. He pressed a button which opened up his helmet and undid the suit. "Take off the suit, Sam! They're about to become bombs!"

Sam hastily followed his movement and began removing her suit. The ghosts continued to approach them the entire time.

Once they had completely slipped out of the suits, Tucker held his up. "On my signal, toss them at the ghosts," he instructed. "Three, two, one… THROW!"

They both threw simultaneously as far as they could. The suits traveled through the air, catching the ghosts' attention. They watched as the suits landed on top of them, and before they could even bother to pull it off, the suits flashed and exploded, taking the ghosts with them.

Sam stared at it in disbelief before shuddering and hugging herself. "You mean we were actually walking in _bombshells_ this entire time?" she exclaimed. "No _wonder_ Danny didn't want to wear them!"

"Forget that, Sam!" Tucker replied, getting into ready stance while holding out his gun. "We've got to keep fighting for another fifteen minutes or so without our suits, so just pray we don't get killed before then!" With that, he charged at a group of ghosts while shooting his gun.

Sam watched him do so and could not help but to be impressed. "Techno Geek-turned warrior," she said with a grin. "Hm; not bad." She then pulled out a weapon of her own and dashed after her best friend, shouting angrily.

* * *

Once again, Danny found himself watching over the battle, this time more satisfied than before; it was good to see Amity Park fighting for what was right, even though it meant attacking a foe that could not be harmed.

But he felt slightly ashamed to not be sharing in the battle; while he had to conserve energy, everyone else was getting hurt, and maybe worse.

Danny took a deep breath and closed his eyes. _Just focus, Danny_, he thought to himself as he began rebuilding on his lost energy. _You need to focus on conserving your energy. Wasting it on this battle will only land everyone in a worse condition than before_.

The ghost shield groaned again and lost some of its power some more. Danny stared up at it before looking down towards the park. "Come on, Tucker, it's _got_ to be nearly time," he said worriedly.

His ear piece began to beep, catching his attention. _"Brace yourself, Son_!" Jack's voice announced to Danny. _"Tucker says it's showtime!" _

Just as he finished, there were several bright flashes from around the town, and then all at once, a series of blue electric energy exploded and trailed over the ground. While it went seen but unfelt by the humans, all the ghosts were instantly shocked and fried. They shrieked in pain before exploding.

Danny smiled and laughed. "Good ol' Tucker!" he said. He placed a finger to his ear. "You did it, Tuck! You're ghost zapper is working like a _bug_ zapper!"

_"And the best part: you won't feel a thing either, thanks to your human half_!" Tucker's voice replied. His next words were addressed to the people around him. _"Okay, people! Back away from the ghosts and the edge of town!" _

Danny let his earpiece go and stared up at the shield. He frowned bravely. "Well," he said, standing up, "Looks like it's _my_ turn to fight." He looked down at the park again. "I'm tossing out my earpiece, guys," he announced. "It's now or never for me. Thanks for the backup, and make sure everyone stays together."

_"Good luck, Danny_," Jazz said gently.

_"Make us proud, Dear_," Maddie added.

_"Go show that ghost who's boss! _" Jack added.

Danny grinned weakly at their encouragements before waiting for the next ones.

They took their time arriving. _"Be… be careful out there, Danny_," Tucker said worriedly. "_If you revert back to human form out there, you may die. You're taking one heck of a risk, dude." _

"I know I am," Danny replied with a sigh, staring up at the shield. "But if I don't do this, we'll all die anyway. You guys did your part; now it's my turn to return the favour. And after four years of ignoring everyone… it's the least I can do."

Tucker remained silent.

"Thanks for the backup plan, Tucker," Danny said softly. He paused a moment before continuing. "And… thank you to you too, Sam."

_"When we made that best friend oath in kindergarten, Danny, Tucker and I weren't kidding around_," Sam replied. _"We'll stick beside you no matter what. Because we don't only care about you-!"_

_"-we_ love _you, Danny_," Tucker finished. _"More than you'll ever know." _

Danny smiled at these words as he felt his chest warm up.

The ghost shield groaned again, becoming even paler than before. Danny looked up at it again and frowned softly. "I'Ve gotta go now," he said calmly. "Good luck with the rest of the battle guys."

_"Go get 'em, Hero_," Jazz said proudly before Danny pulled out his earpiece.

He stared at the piece in his hands before tossing it aside and staring up at the Ghost Zone. "Ready or not," he said, "Here I come." He jumped into the air and flew up to the shield, where he created a green shield around his body. This allowed him to phase through the shield without being harmed.

Once on the other side, he had no one to count on but himself.

This was his time. His moment.

Either he would emerge the victor…

… Or die.


	24. Chapter 24

From the Ghost Zone, Amity Park looked like a crumbling town beneath a giant green dome. Even from the outside, Danny could hear the blasts and shouts of the ghosts as they were destroyed by Tucker's zappers.

So far, Tucker's plan was working; the ghosts were falling prey to his creations.

Danny released the shield around him and looked around. The Ghost Zone was incredibly silent, almost too silent.

He frowned._ I don't like this_, he thought. _It's like a dead zone here. No ghost, no spirit; not even a floating object. It's like if_ everything _avoids this place…_

"How _right_ you are, Daniel."

Danny gasped and turned around, ready to throw a ghost ray, but was instead thrown back by a red orb of light. It exploded against his chest and threw him backwards with a painful groan.

A deep laugh caused him to raise his head and look up at his attacker.

"I must admit, Danny Phantom," the Ghost Keeper announced as he shrunk a few feet and floated towards the man; "Your friend certainly knows how to draw out a plan, and your town is incredibly courageous." His smile disappeared and was replaced with a frown. "But I'm afraid your little courage streak ends here. I am weary of watching you fight to no end. Honestly, I expected you to lose energy during the battle, but then I realized how this plan conserved it."

Danny frowned back and held out his hands as they glowed green. "Tucker's a genius when it comes to protecting Amity Park," he said. "You don't have enough faith in humans, Ghost Keeper."

"Why would I have faith in those who murdered me?" the Ghost Keeper growled. "They've done nothing to help; they have only made things worse! Do you see where I am now?"

"What; sucking ghosts out and living forever isn't _enough_?" Danny replied in disgust.

"They robbed me of my being, of my power and of my wealth!" the Ghost Keeper continued. "Humans deserve to suffer, just as much as those blasted _ghosts_ do!"

Danny bared his teeth. "I'm not going to let you harm anyone anymore," he hissed. "This time, I'm going to fight you, and _this_ time, I will win."

"How cute; a ghost-man who hasn't used his powers in nearly five years decides that it's time to be the vanquisher?" the Ghost Keeper mocked. He smiled deviously, baring his jagged teeth, and held up his fists. Red orbs of ecto-plasma formed around them. "Then I suppose I shall arm myself to the fullest, if that is even enough of a _challenge_ for you."

"Bring it on, GK," Danny challenged. "Because I won't go down that easily."

The Ghost Keeper's eyes flashed before he roared and charged for Danny. Danny held his ground until the right moment and, just before being attacked, released all the cold energy within him.

The flash of bright blue light caused the Ghost Keeper to squint in surprise. "What in the world?" he gasped, only seconds before being pushed backwards again by the cold ice and energy.

Danny ceased releasing his energy after a few more seconds and then looked down at his hands. He grinned. "Wow! I haven't felt _that_ relieved since I went to NASA!" he exclaimed.

The Ghost Keeper groaned as he rubbed his head and glared at the half-ghost. "How did you ever master that?" he wondered. "That's a most powerful gift to behold."

Danny smiled back and got into ready stance. "It's one heckovan icer too, Hothead," he said.

His enemy's eyes flashed with fury. "You will rue the day you mocked my power, Boy," he hissed. "And I shall make you pay dearly, by taking your whole as my energy!"

Danny beckoned him over with two fingers and his eyes glowed green. "Danny Phantom accepts your challenge!" he said.

The Ghost Keeper growled angrily and charged for Danny again. This time, Danny charged back, holding out a glowing fist and yelling loudly.

They collided with each other at full speed, creating a bright flash of light upon impact.


	25. Chapter 25

_Vavoom! _

While the ghost armies continued to get fried by Tucker's zappers, all the people of Amity Park pointed upwards at the flash of light and watched as their hero engaged in combat against the giant ghost outside the shield.

Now assembled together in the field near the park, the Fentons, Tucker and Sam stared upwards at the battle, along with the neighbourhood.

"Do you think Danny's strong enough to take on that guy alone?" Jazz asked worriedly. "What if he needs our help?"

"Even if he did, Jazz, we wouldn't be of any assistance," Tucker replied without tearing his eyes away from the battle raging on. "If we even pass that ghost shield unprotected, we'll turn into ghosts and become liable to becoming dinner for GK. And _that_ would only make him more powerful."

Sam pushed some hair out of her dirty face and hugged herself as if to keep warm. "I've got a really bad feeling about this, Tucker," she said, catching his attention. "Like, majorly bad. Almost as if something horrible is going to happen soon."

Just as she said those words, the shield gave another groan, this time much louder and lower than the other times. Everyone looked up at it as it suddenly began to falter in its green glow.

People gasped in horror and most even dashed off to hide in fear. They had done their fighting; now, they wanted to find a safe place before anything else happened.

The Phantom Crew watched them leave before staring up at the shield again. "I don't think anything worse can happen than the shield going down," Tucker said worriedly.

* * *

Danny had lost track of time. He did not know how long it had been since he began the battle with the Ghost Keeper. But so far, he had managed to keep himself from suffering too many serious blows. He knew the courage and trust of his friends, family and of the people of his town was helping him conserve his ghost energy, but for how much longer, not even Danny knew.

He used his ghost rays, his ghostly ice, his shields, duplication and even invisibility and intangibility to protect himself and avoid getting hit.

But the Ghost Keeper proved to be nearly unbeatable. Whatever Danny dished out at him, he threw back nearly three times as strong, if not more. He avoided being hit by attacks even more than Danny could.

Danny could feel his energy beginning to seep away after what seemed to be nearly an hour of unending battling. He shot another large ray of ghostly ice from his eyes and then flew away a few hundred feet. Groaning painfully, he placed an arm around his waist and winced while clenching his teeth.

The Ghost Keeper laughed deeply. "Do my eyes deceive me?" he said. "Is the all-powerful Danny Phantom losing strength? What will his beloved town think of him now?"

Danny looked up at him and glared. "I still have plenty of tricks up my sleeve, Ghost Keeper," he warned.

His enemy laughed again and pointed at him. "Oh, _really_?" he laughed. "Like what, may I be so bold to ask? Your Ultimate Control? Spare me the humour, Daniel; you haven't even _mastered_ that ability yet! What makes you think you will be able to use it against me?" His eyes flashed anger as his smile disappeared. "The only one in this realm and the Real World that deserves such a gift as that is _me_, Danny; you are too _weak_ to call up the power to use that gift now!"

Danny felt his anger begin to bubble within him again. He bared his teeth and growled as his eyes flashed green.

The Ghost Keeper smiled a little once more. "There goes your anger again," he said. "Did you not learn what horrid things anger can do to one's powers? Oh, but of course you did; you use anger all the time to fuel your abilities."

Danny growled a little louder and his body was haloed in a green glow. "BE QUIEEEEETTT!" he yelled menacingly, ejecting a powerful ghostly wail at the spirit.

The Ghost Keeper gasped in surprise and braced himself as the wail passed over him. He stood up ground as his cape fluttered, but hardly any damage had come to him.

Danny stopped yelling and gasped painfully once more, grasping his stomach again.

The Ghost Keeper looked on in satisfaction. "That one took plenty out of you, I see," he said. "You must be cautious on how you spend your energy, Daniel; it may be the death of you."

Danny groaned before looking up at him. "If I'm really getting this weak, why aren't you just finishing me off?" he said.

"Please; and risk not having you see the destruction of your fair town?" the Ghost Keeper laughed. "I relish in making my prey _wish_ they had never been born, Daniel; and _you_ are one I hope to make suffer deeply before your time comes."

Danny narrowed his eyes and straightened out. "I won't let any of that happen," he replied. "And I won't let you make fun of my family or of me. I _will_ defeat you, even if it means using all of my powers at once!"

He took a deep breath as his body began to glow both green and blue, and then let out another powerful wail in the Ghost Keeper's direction. This time, however, his wail was accompanied by every other offensive attack he possessed, including ghostly ice, ghost ray and duplication. Shards of ice flew towards the Ghost Keeper at full speed.

The Ghost Keeper was shocked that Danny would go to that much effort to protect his town; yet the shield the Ghost Keeper put up was strong enough to protect himself from Danny's attacks. Although incredibly impressed by the man's courage, the Ghost Keeper laughed mockingly. "You'll only die in vain that way, Danny Phantom!" he shouted. "Even when attacking all at once, you will not be able to destroy me! I am the Ghost Keeper! I know of every power in the Ghost Zone, and the only one that _can_ defeat me is unreachable!"

Danny ceased attacking and floated limply for a few seconds. He closed his eyes and tried to regain more strength, but he was far too weak to do so. _Skulker was right_, he thought. _Using my powers all at once isn't only stupid and useless, it's suicide_. He frowned and clenched his teeth. _But I can't let him win; he's already destroying my town; he's already hurt innocent people, including my family_… He squeezed his fists. _I will not let him get away with that! _

Anger and hate bubbled within his chest, warming it up at an incredible speed. Danny growled softly as he fought to gain control of the gift he had been seeking to use against his enemy.

He opened his eyes and stared angrily at the Ghost Keeper. His irises glowed green with hate as his body began to glow in a pale white light. He squeezed his fists. "I will _not_ let you get away with any of the crimes you've already committed, Ghost Keeper!" Danny yelled furiously. "I _will_ destroy you, and even if I do kill myself, at least the world will be rid of YOU!"

He raised his arms as he glowed brighter and brighter. He closed his eyes and reopened them; this time, they were filled with white light as he got ready to blast the Ghost Keeper with all the energy he had left, using the gift of Ultimate Control.

To his confusion, the Ghost Keeper only smiled and laughed menacingly. The ghost threw his head back, laughed loudly and then pointed at Danny. "You _fool_!" he shouted mockingly. "You dimwitted _fool!_ You will be the death of _everyone you know!" _

At these words, Danny's frown softened. The dream he had had a day earlier came back to memory: the deserted town; the missing people; the destruction…

The Ghost Keeper seemed to understand what was going through his mind. He chuckled darkly. "That's right, Daniel," he said. "You will be the _death_ of them all. Without full control over your gift, you will destroy _everything_! All the people you know, all the places you've been, you _will_ be the most powerful ghost of all… and all ghosts _and_ humans will FEAR YOU!"

Danny slowly loosened his clenched teeth and stared in silence at his enemy.

The Ghost Keeper pointed at the shield beneath them and smiled like a wolf. "But enough about _you; _let's see what happens to your own defences when you blast against them with this… _Ultimate Control." _

Danny gasped softly and looked down at the ghost shield around the town. It began to falter, and suddenly, began to crack.

_No! _Danny thought in horror.


	26. Chapter 26

The shield protecting Amity Park began to crack like broken glass. The cracks echoed deeply and loudly over the entire town, stretching over it like a spiderweb.

People screamed in horror and ran to find cover, hoping that they would be protected. Children cried in fright as their parents rushed them to safety.

Tucker shielded his face as his beret flew off of his head, due to the powerful gust of wind that had begun. "The shield's breaking!" he shouted in terror. "Danny's Ghost Shield is BREAKING!"

"Mom, you've got to put another one up!" Jazz insisted frantically, pulling on her mother's arm. "You need to put another Ghost Shield up!"

"I can't, Jazz, we don't have enough power to make one this big!" Maddie replied worriedly. "And even if we did, we'd never put it up in time before Danny's is destroyed!"

Sam watched as people panicked around her and then thrust her arms around Tucker for safety, just as he did the same with her. "If this goes bad, Tucker, I just want you to know that I'll always be grateful you were one of my best friends!" she shouted over the wind. "I know it sounds sappy but it's true!"

"Right now, I don't think anything can sound sappy, Sam," Tucker replied. "Not even if coming from a goth." He held her tightly and shut his eyes. "I'm glad you and Danny were my best friends too. You would have made a great environmentalist."

Sam opened her eyes and looked up at the shield through Tucker's arms. Tears of fear filled her eyes. "Danny, please save us," she whispered through sobs before burying her face in Tucker's shirt again.

* * *

Danny stared in sheer horror as his shield continued to crack like ice on a flowing river. "No, it can't be," he whispered as tears filled his eyes.

The Ghost Keeper chuckled evilly, catching his attention. "Oh, yes, Daniel," he said lowly. "I _told_ you that the destruction of your town would be of your doing. They would have been fine, had Danny Phantom never returned. It's all your fault. If you destroy me, you destroy everything you _love..." _

This last word echoed for long seconds in Danny's head. He raised his eyebrows in revelation as he finally understood what he had been doing wrong the entire time:

Dash beating him up; Paulina accusing him; Sam getting attacked by the Ghost Keeper; Jasmine taking an embarrassing picture; frustration at not controlling an ultimate power; a ghost who wanted to destroy his home…

_Anger_. Anger had been the dominant emotion in those times. Danny had used his hate and anger to fuel his Ultimate Control, making it accessible and powerful; but also deadly. He could gain complete control over any living being or any object, and order them to go where he pleased. He could control any ghost, any human, and use them to do _his will. _

But that was what he had been doing wrong the entire time; Danny could only think of how much hate and anger he had within him, that all he wanted to do was destroy whatever had caused his emotions to bubble in the first place. This made his Ultimate Control reachable, but he did not control it; his emotions did, and _that's_ what was causing its power to grow, hit the ghost shield and cause it to crack.

Danny searched for a moment to find any other way to activate his power, and then finally, like the light of a new day, the answer dawned upon him, almost making him feel foolish and ashamed to not have thought of it earlier:

Tucker and Sam, coming home every year just in the hopes of seeing their best friend again; his parents and Jazz, rejoicing on having the youngest family member return home; the late nights out with his best friends; the intimate moments with Maddie and Jazz; the encouragement of his ghost rivals; the encouragement given by Tucker…

And the kiss… the kiss that changed his entire life in one split second… the kiss that was delivered by the very last person Danny ever expected to want to kiss him again… the kiss… that made the only other emotion, powerful enough to overcome anger, to finally burst out from his caged up heart and explode throughout his entire body.

_"We_ love _you, Danny_," Tucker had said to him; _"More than you'll ever know…"_

Danny felt his heart fill with more determination and a new emotion settled in it. It pushed away the heat that anger had left there and replaced it with an even greater warmth, one that was enough to break through both his human and ghost forms. Danny shut his eyes tightly, clenched his teeth and shouted out loudly as the newfound energy within him exploded and thrust his entire body into a bright halo of white light.

The Ghost Keeper looked on in complete bewilderment and shielded his eyes as Danny's light expanded as far as it could possible go. "What?" he said in shock, uncovering his face.

Danny floated slowly towards him and only stopped when a few dozen feet separated them from each other. He frowned gravely, his eyes glowing with white light, and clenched his fists tightly.

"How is this possible?" the Ghost Keeper gasped. "How can you be controlling this power with so much ease? It's not possible!"

_"It is possible_," Danny replied. _"You see, there's just one thing that you never figured out, Ghost Keeper; one emotion that can overrule Anger: and that's_ love. _Nothing is more powerful than that." _

Danny raised a hand and pointed it at the Ghost Keeper. _"Don't move_," he ordered.

The Ghost Keeper gasped again as he felt his entire body go stiff, almost as if a powerful chain had him tied in place. He tried breaking free but found that he could not, especially after Danny placed a glowing white forcefield around him.

Danny pointed at the town down below without looking away from the Ghost Keeper and then raised his hand. Out from the ghost shield rose several ghost weapons that the army left behind, even some of his parents' artillery. With glowing haloes of white light around them, they rose up and pointed at the Ghost Keeper, ready to fire on Danny's command.

The ghost Keeper growled at Danny. Danny narrowed his eyes and pointed at him. _"Fire_," he said incredibly calmly.

Every weapon there immediately began to fire at the Ghost Keeper. He yelled in horrible pain, as though he had never felt pain like this before. He tried to break free, using all of his powers that he possessed, but they only rebounded off of the forcefield Danny had placed around him and injured the Ghost Keeper.

After several seconds of weakening him, Danny raised a hand and all weapons ceased to fire. The Ghost Keeper, now incredibly weak, looked up at the ghost before him.

Danny smiled boldly in reply. _"How does it feel to be attacked by a thousand ghosts_?" he asked.

"You fool," the Ghost Keeper hissed. "You don't know how much energy you are spoiling to perform these stunts."

Danny glared in reply. _"Maybe not_," he said, creating a white orb of light in his hands. He pulled his arms back, as though he was about to throw a large ball. _"But at least I know that my family will be safe from the likes of you." _

With that, he threw his arms forward and shot an incredibly large and powerful ectoblast at the Ghost Keeper. Upon impact, the Ghost Keeper hollered in horrible pain. His body became haloed in several layers of white light.

Danny bared his teeth as he forced out as much power as he could, only thinking of protecting his family. The more the Ghost Keeper weakened, the more the world around them faded in and out to Earth.

_I'd better do this fast_, Danny thought. _Before the ghost shield gives away!_


	27. Chapter 27

Everyone covered their eyes as they watched Danny blast the Ghost Keeper with white light. The sound of the evil spirit yelling painfully only made the shield crack faster.

The Phantom crew watched as the world outside the shield began to change. More and more, the sky and hills around their town began to show, replacing the Ghost Zone.

"Do you think Danny can restore everything before the shield collapses, Jack?" Maddie cried out over the roaring wind.

"Here's hoping, or it's goodbye Amity Park!" Jack replied.

Tucker and Sam did not say a word. They only prayed with all their hearts that their best friend would not fail them now.

* * *

Danny continued to push as much as he could into his attack. He could feel his body growing weaker, but he refused to transform back into a human without saving his town.

The Ghost Keeper cried painfully a little longer before suddenly beginning to laugh. He opened his eyes and stared at Danny as rays of white light broke through his boy. "You stupid half-ghost!" he mocked. "You fool! At this rate, you will lose your whole self to this realm! Did you not understand when that ghost hunter said that those who succeeded at perfecting this gift lost _everything_? They were destroyed, Daniel! DESTROYED!"

Danny softened his frown yet continued to shoot his powerful ghost ray.

"You are using the energy in _both_ of your bodies, Daniel," the Ghost Keeper clarified. "Once your ghost self loses energy, it will borrow what your human self has. Don't you understand? To perform this gift, you need an exceedingly large amount of energy, and any ordinary ghost does not possess that much! That is why they were all _destroyed_ when trying to perform it perfectly, like you are doing now!"

Danny stared at him in growing concern, but did not stop shooting his attack.

"But because you are half human, you will simply lose that which you were born with: a _human_ form to take," his enemy continued. "You would have used so much energy, your human body will detach itself from you and disappear into the Ghost Zone, perhaps fade away to nothing. It will remain lost in this sea of endlessness. Without your human body, you cannot go back home, Daniel; all that you knew will be forfeit. You will be forced to remain in the Ghost Zone as a ghost… _forever." _

Danny stared at him in silence for a very long time, contemplating what was being said to him. If this did happen, he could never become an astronaut, never get married, never raise a family; humans and ghosts just can't reproduce, if the ghost does not have a human and physical form to take. If what the Ghost Keeper said was true, he would lose _everything. _

But being a hero meant putting himself aside for later. Right now, all that mattered were the Ghosts in the Ghost Zone and the humans from Amity Park; his parents, Jack and Madeline Fenton; his sister, Jasmine Fenton; his best friends, Tucker Foley… and Sam. Samantha Manson.

Danny thought of them once more and it was enough to give him more strength. He frowned gravely and glared at the Ghost Keeper. _"Then at least they can all remember this day as the day YOU FAILED!_" he yelled.

He pumped out the rest of his energy in one shot and blasted it at the Ghost Keeper with a loud shout. His body began to glow more and more.

The Ghost Keeper stared at him in sheer horror and tried breaking free again. "No! No, don't!" he yelled. "I beg of you, have mercy! HAVE MERCY!"

He became overpowered by white light. He screamed painfully. "NOOOOOO!" his voice hollered, just before he exploded into thousands of light particles.

_VAVOOOOMMM!_

The force caused Danny to shield his face, even though everything that flew his way only skimmed off of the invisible forcefield that protected him. Once everything had quieted, he opened his eyes and stared at the sight before him.

Visions of different ghosts swirled in the darkness of the Ghost Zone before him, with an eerie green glow. Each ghost seemed to emerge from a dark pit, along with bright light. Once out, they each turned to Danny and smiled in gratitude before turning and fading into nothing.

Danny watched as each and every ghost that he released left and were free to fade away from existence in their own peaceful manner. It was only when the vision had finished did the world around him fade away as well. When he looked about, he saw the orange sky and the setting sun in the west, and the rolling green hills and forests that surrounded Amity Park.

The spell had been broken. He grinned weakly and looked down at the town, just as his ghost shield shattered and burst into oblivion. The town remained as it had always been.

It was saved.

Danny could hear people cheering loudly and rejoicing as they came out of their hiding places. A gentle breeze caught his attention, and he watched as the bright white glow that haloed him twisted around his body and formed a halo. It trailed down from his feet and went up his body until it had fully traced him. Then, it disappeared in the blink of an eye and never returned.

Danny blinked and his eyes returned to normal. He would have cheered for joy as well, but something felt different. He felt as though he no longer belonged in this world, that he could no longer fit in.

He looked down at himself and studied his hands. He was still in ghost mode, and he did not feel as though he had lost any energy at all; in fact, everything felt… normal.

Suddenly, _normal_ did not sound like a good word. Danny slowly turned his hand over before staring at his fingers and rubbing them against each other. He could not feel any warmth in his chest anymore; he could not feel…_anything. _

The truth finally soaked into him as Danny sighed heavily and headed back down to the ground. Victory was his… for the moment.

* * *

Sam and Tucker were among the first to look up after everything quieted, and they were the first to rejoice upon seeing the setting sun in the distance. They laughed loudly and jumped for joy before hugging each other and dancing. Soon, they had the Fentons and the rest of the town doing the same.

"He did it! He did it, we're saved!" Sam laughed happily. "Danny saved Amity Park! We're all going to live another day!"

"I _knew_ he could do it! I just _knew_ he could!" Tucker cried out. "Danny Phantom is back to stay!"

Jazz, Maddie and Jack jumped for joy and cheered loudly. People around them began to dance together when the power returned to the town. People ran into their homes and blasted their stereos, sending the entire town into dancing.

Jack twirled Maddie around happily. "How's _this_ for a going away party for Danny, Maddie?" he asked.

"I think it's the _bomb_!" Maddie replied, striking a pose.

Jazz ran over to Sam and Tucker and shared a hug with them. "I can hardly find anything to express myself!" she said happily. "After all these years, Danny's still got what it takes to be a hero!"

"He's Danny Phantom, Jazz!" Tucker replied, waving an arm through the air. "No one can beat him!"

A glint in the setting sun caught their attention, causing Sam, Tucker, Jazz, Maddie and Jack to look up again.

Gently flying towards them was Danny, the very same man who had saved their town.

"Danny!" Tucker cried out happily as he broke into a dash and ran towards him. Everyone else followed closely behind.

Danny transformed his ghost tail into legs and landed gently and soundlessly on the grass in the clearing. He looked up when he heard familiar voices shouting out his name, and found Tucker and the others racing towards him, waving their arms about while laughing.

He could not help but to smile at this.

Tucker slowed to a stop before him and spread out his arms while cheering. "Ha, ha, ha, Danny! You _did_ it, dude!" he exclaimed. "You saved Amity Park!"

"And you said you were rusty," Maddie added sweetly as the others joined Tucker.

Jazz clasped her hands together. "We're so _proud_ of you, Danny," she said. "You were able to use your Ultimate Control Power, and just in the nick of time, too!"

"Almost makes me wish I had given myself half ghost powers," Jack added proudly.

Danny grinned weakly at him and looked at the others. "Thanks," he said softly. "Though I couldn't have done it without you guys. The Ghost Keeper was really tough to beat, and if I had done all the battling you guys did down here before fighting him, no one would be alive right now."

"It was a team effort, we'll admit it this time," Sam confessed with a shrug. "But you were the real hero, Danny. You saved Amity Park, and all the people inside of it!"

Danny smiled back at her for a moment before looking at Tucker again.

Tucker ran up to him. "Come on, man!" he said with a laugh. "Let's go take out at the Nasty Burger for a celebration!" He raised his arm in order to place it on Danny's back. "My treat, pal!"

But when his hand came to rest, it simply continued and flowed right through Danny's body. Tucker gasped quickly in shock and pulled his hand back, just as the others stared at Danny as their smiles faded away.

Danny stared down at Tucker's hand before raising his eyes and looking at his best friend in silence.

Tucker held his hand near, not understanding what had just happened, and then forced up a nervous smile. "Danny, come on," he said, trying to laugh. "You can get out of Ghost form, now, you know."

Danny looked at him some more as his eyes darkened. He shook his head slowly. "No," he whispered.

"What do you mean no? You _should_, Danny. You should always revert to human form in order to conserve-!"

"No, Tucker," Danny repeated weakly. He raised his head and stared sadly at his best friend. "I… I _can't." _

Tucker fell incredibly silent and shared the confused and concerned looks of everyone else.

Danny looked at them all in silence for a moment before tears filled his eyes. "I can't change back, Tucker," he said through the lump in his throat. "When I performed the power of Ultimate Control, I used more energy than what was actually possible. Because of that, I no longer… have a human body to revert to."

At these words, everyone stared at him in sheer horror. Jazz covered her mouth and gasped.

"I'm a ghost," Danny went on, trying to steady his voice. "Just a ghost, for now. Because of that, I can't stay here."

Maddie was the first to object. "That's not true, Danny!" she said, trying to steady her faltering voice as well. "You are _very_ welcome to stay here for as long as you want! Whether you're a ghost or a half-ghost, you're our son and you have the right to stay here!"

"That's not what I mean, Mom," Danny replied. "Ghosts come in and out of the ghost zone because if they don't, their bodies will eventually dissolve into nothing. If I stay here in the Real World for too long, that will happen to me too."

Maddie shook her head violently as tears overflowed her eyes. "No, no, no," she cried as her husband walked over and held her against him.

Danny stared at them for a moment before looking at Tucker again. "… My body is lost somewhere in the Ghost Zone," he said. "It's not destroyed, just lost. I don't know how long it will take me to find it…" He frowned as bravely as he could. "But I won't stop until I _do_ find it. I promise."

Tucker only stared at him in silence, unable to find anything to say. Tears filled his eyes as he looked upon the only friend he had had his entire life.

Danny stared back at him in silence until Jazz gasped softly again. "Danny, you're disappearing," she whispered.

Danny looked at himself and noticed that his body was going transparent. The outline of his body began to glow dimly in the setting sun.

"You have to go back to the Ghost Zone," Tucker finally forced himself to say. When Danny looked at him, he raised a hand and wiped his tears. "But… why now? We just came home to see you again, Danny. Why is it that everything can fall apart in just three months?"

Danny finally smiled weakly at him. "It didn't fall apart, Tucker," he said. "If it hadn't been for you, Sam and Jazz, I would have just gone back to NASA and all of this would have never happened. I would have completely forgotten who I am supposed to be and what I am supposed to do. But thanks to you guys and all the fun we had, I finally understand what it means to be a hero, and why I've been chosen to be the protector of this town and the Ghost Zone. If it hadn't been for your _love_…I probably would have _never_ learned how to use Ultimate Control properly."

Tucker looked away sadly. "But what's the use of winning a battle," he began, "If you're not there to celebrate?"

Danny stared at him in silence. "I'll be back," he reassured him. "I've just got to go look for my body, first. I won't stop searching for it, Tucker. I promise."

Sam remained silent the entire time Danny and Tucker spoke. She was unsure of how to express herself in this moment, and was afraid that, if she opened her mouth, a sob would come out.

Danny waited a moment before looking at Jazz. "If NASA calls for me, just tell them that I went missing," he instructed her. "Tell them something happened and no one's been able to find me yet."

Jazz nodded sadly and wiped her tears. "I'll cover your tracks, Little Brother," she squeaked.

Danny looked at Tucker again. "I don't know what else to say," he said with a nervous laugh, "Except thank you for the best summer I have ever spent… And just keep being yourself, Tuck. I don't want you to change. I mean, maturity could help a singe, but…"

Tucker chuckled at this and nervously rubbed his arm.

"… But don't change anything else. Just finish up your college studies and get smarter, not different, okay? I want to come back to the best friend I've known my whole life."

Tucker nodded and looked up at him. "I promise," he whispered.

Danny smiled back before finally turning his eyes on Sam.

Sam walked hesitantly up to him while hugging her waist. She sighed shakily and looked up into Danny's eyes as tears streaked across her black makeup and the dirt on her face. The gentle August breeze blew through her hair.

Danny stared back at her in silence before more tears filled his eyes. Regret and sorrow flooded his green irises. He opened his mouth, let it hand like so in silence, before finally uttering something: "… I love you, Sam," he whispered through tears. He shook his head weakly for a moment. "… I love you… _so_ much."

Sam tightened her lips together to keep any embarrassing sound from escaping. She slowly raised her right hand up to Danny's cheek and attempted to touch it, but only felt air. To anyone, even to her eyes, her hand could vaguely be seen through Danny's body. She held her hand up like that for a moment before leaning towards him, closing her eyes and parting her lips in order to kiss him.

Though their lips joined, she could not physically feel anything. It was as though she was trying to kiss empty space. But what allowed her to know that they had truly joined in that moment was the fact that she could feel an incredible burst of warmth on her lips, as though a warm yet painless flame was sitting there. It spread through her entire body and poured into her heart, up to the point that it made it overflow and burst.

After a long moment, Sam forced herself to part from him. Danny opened his eyes and stared at her in silence as the breeze played through his hair.

Sam waited a minute longer before speaking. "I love you too, Danny," she whispered as tears slid down her cheeks. "And I always will."

A light seemed to ignite in his eyes and bring even a sliver of hope to them again. He raised a hand and attempted to hold Sam's in his, but it only phased through, glowing dimly when it did.

Sam tried the same thing before finally pulling herself away from him and stepping back to stand beside Tucker. She placed her hands together and took as deep a breath as she could.

"I'll be back," Danny announced, looking at each of them again. "I'm not running away this time. I'll find my body, and once I do, I'll come right back home."

Maddie and Jack held each other tightly and tried to smile at their son, despite their sadness.

Danny stared at them and tried to grin. "I'll be fine, Mom," he added. "Don't worry so much."

Maddie took a deep breath and nodded as firmly as she could.

Tucker waited a moment before placing an arm around Sam. "Danny," he said.

Danny looked at him in silence.

Tucker held Sam close to him and raised his chin. "Don't worry," he continued. "… I'll take care of her. I promise."

Danny raised his head a little and finally smiled warmly, as though he knew those words to be true. He nodded weakly. "I know you will," he whispered.

The breeze blew a little more around him until Danny finally faded away from view and disappeared. Tiny light particles, green and white, fluttered in the air like dandelion seeds before joining together and disappearing like a star in the morning. Then, everything fell silent, except for the rejoicing in the streets behind them.

Tucker and Sam kept their eyes on the glow until they were sure that Danny was no longer present. Sam took another deep sigh and looked down at her stomach.

Tucker waited a moment and looked at her. "You… gonna be okay, Sam?" he asked.

Sam looked at him for a moment and grinned weakly before nodding. "Yeah," she replied. She stared down at her stomach again and gently laid a hand on it, rubbing it slowly. "… _We'll_ be fine…"

_To be continued…_

* * *

_AUTHOR'S NOTE: To clarify, No, Danny is not dead. Note the TO BE CONTINUED. The adventure continues in MYSTERY OF THE SPIRIT GEMS._

_If you want the link to the slideshow or any other picture goodies, go to my gallery on my deviantart page._

_Thank you to all who read this. The second story will be posted shortly, and then on to the next adventure, DOUBLE TROUBLE._


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